Philadelphia 76ers: The Winning Starts Now
With a combined 47 wins over the last 3 seasons, the Philadelphia 76ers have been the bottom dwellers of the NBA in that time. With the additions to the team going into this season, it’s safe to say the “process” is dead.
Joining the Philadelphia 76ers for the first time since being drafted this year is the man who was, and still seems to be by many in Philadelphia, proclaimed to be the second coming of Hakeem Olajuwon, Joel Embiid. Embiid can potentially be that dominant big man on both ends of the court who doesn’t allow anything easy for opponents who dare to bring the ball into the lane and physically manhandle those who dare to try to stop him from turning them into a poster.
The fact that Embiid has yet to be capable of being declared healthy by the Philadelphia 76ers’ training staff is alarming for some and deservedly so. On the other hand, Embiid was recently cleared for five on five scrimmaging. Two years is a lot of rust to brush off, but being that he was cleared to partake in this type of activity three to four months prior to the start of the season, should give him an exorbitant amount of time to get back in game shape. All photos and videos of him currently create the notion that losing weight is not something of concern for Joel. If Embiid can just get himself close to where he was coming into the 2014 NBA draft (before the foot injury), he should thrive in the league.
As most already know, Dario Saric to the Philadelphia 76ers this year seems pretty inevitable. Let me preface this by saying Dario Saric is in no way going to be a superstar in the league. However, he can be a serviceable role player for the team. Saric averaged about 12 points and six rebounds a game last year in approximately 22 minutes in each contest. If he truly is going to be doing the team next season, he’ll be fighting for minutes with the exorbitant amount of talented big guys the Sixers are currently equipped with. But if he can put in solid minutes for the team when he does get his opportunity to do so, the team will be better for it.
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July first marks the day that teams can open up communication lines to any potential free agents. The Philadelphia 76ers could very well make a big splash this year, but it’s unlikely. More probable, however, is they sign a player or two that makes themselves more viable. Bryan Colangelo whiffed on making a trade for his point guard in the draft, Kris Dunn. But there are free agent guards hitting the market this year that the Sixers could make a strong push for.
Then there’s the main factor in the Philadelphia 76ers turning the corner towards a team on the rise, Ben Simmons. He is what almost all people in the basketball universe consider to be a once in a generation type player. The Sixers front office hopefully has the wherewithal to see that when you get a specimen like him, that you immediately begin surrounding them with legitimate teammates.
Having someone in charge like Bryan Colangelo, make fans believe that the men in charge of the organization aren’t ignorant to the fact that we need to start bringing in talent now. We need to start building this team into a winner now. There’s no reason to believe that the team will continue tanking next season. The polar opposite will actually take place.
Next: What To Expect From Rest Of the Offseason
The Philadelphia 76ers will begin winning this year. No longer will the process contain the aspect of being the worst team in the league. With these players (and players yet to be acquired by the team via free agency) joining Jahlil Okafor and Nerlens Noel, the Philadelphia 76ers are going to be significantly improved from their play in the last three seasons and winning will become the new goal.