Philadelphia 76ers Could Be Positioning For 2017 Offseason

The Philadelphia 76ers have a roster and a cap space built to attack the free agent market, but they might not accomplish that this offseason.

There’s a lot of talk about this offseason being the most important one for the Philadelphia 76ers and their rebuild. The fact is, with the front-loaded free agent class this summer, the team may be better suited being patient and attacking next year’s free agent market.

Not to say that the Philadelphia 76ers don’t have the luxury of just sitting back this offseason, as the team must not only make the right pick at the top of the draft but to also surround their rookie with the right pieces for him to flourish. But for the team to start making drastic improvement, they’ll have to make a splash in free agency, and will have a better chance of doing so next season.

The Philadelphia 76ers will still have the cap space to make moves barring any huge deals, but they must improve this coming season to allow themselves to have a successful offseason. This could be the justification for the Jeff Teague–Nerlens Noel trade, where it seems like the Philadelphia 76ers are flipping a young center for a one-year rental.

The fact is that one-year rental is to make a jump in the win column for the team, giving them slightly more intrigue when the summer of 2017 comes along. Guards, guards, and guards will be at an over abundance that summer, as the predicted draft class is loaded with exciting guard prospects and the summer is filled with elite-level talent.

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The Philadelphia 76ers will most likely still have a pick or two (courtesy of the Los Angeles Lakers) within the top-10 of next year’s draft class, where they could take guards Markelle Fultz, Dennis Smith, or De’Aaron Fox depending where the pick lands. The draft may take a back seat however, as the free agency will be the key to building a team in 2017.

The top-tier names are most likely out of the question, as Steph Curry will stay on his throne with the Golden State Warriors and Russell Westbrook will probably stay in Oklahoma City barring a surprise Kevin Durant break-up in the summer of 2016. After that, some intriguing options for the Philadelphia 76ers include trying to somehow pry away Giannis Antetokounmpo from the Milwaukee Bucks (which is almost impossible), restricted free agents Dennis Schroeder, Victor Oladipo, and CJ McCollum, unrestricted free agents Jeff Teague, Derrick Rose, and Jrue Holiday, and Kyle Lowry, who could opt out of his contract.

There are much more realistic and impactful players the Philadelphia 76ers could take their chances on at low price. Derrick Rose is nowhere near his old self, but is still an experienced scorer who will most likely come cheap, unless he can somehow revert back to his old ways. What would make him a questionable signee would be his lack of a jump shot if the Philadelphia 76ers were to draft Ben Simmons and play him as a point forward. This would nullify the benefit Rose brings to the table.

In what would be the most surprising and impactful signing, picking up CJ McCollum would allow the team to spread the floor and surround their big man and incoming rookie with more shooting. The Portland Trailblazers would need to regress big time, or tie themselves up with big contracts this offseason, to have McCollum walk as a restricted free agent.

The Philadelphia 76ers could make some outright course-changing moves next offseason, but won’t be able to do so without major improvement this coming season. Bryan Colangelo won’t be scrapping the process, rather flipping assets to create a team that can win more games, setting themselves up for a team that could win something sooner than later.

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The Process will always have a hold on a lot of the fanbase, but it should be remembered that a new regime will have a new philosophy. Each philosophy has the same end goal, to put the team in a position to win a title, just in different ways. Sam Hinkie gave Colangelo the assets to be successful, and Bryan Colangelo must now find a way to turn them into something special.