Sixers rebuild remaining fragile, or more formidable?

The Sixers are clearly on the their way to the better half of a long rebuild. But is the state of the franchise’s rise still in a state of fragility?

It’s easy to see the excitement rising in Philadelphia. How could it not? After some horrendous seasons of basketball, the Sixers now the league’s most promising core, and some impactful veterans. The weakened Eastern Conference should push them as high as the playoffs this season.

All this progression seemed to happen in the matter of a summer. But really, it was the long-term vision of a former general manager, and the effectiveness of his replacement that took years to come together. Three incredibly talented young players are the basis of this rebuild. And while the core has the potential to be great, it could still be a very fragile state for this Sixers team.

It’s redundant to name the injury history of Joel Embiid. 31 games. Multiple surgeries. History of big men with the same injury. All of it. All of it has been beaten so far into the ground no hears this and doesn’t produce a sly eye-roll. The fact is, it’s the biggest red flag the team has.

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Sure, this may have been a more dire problem before the addition of Ben Simmons, but his injury also raises questions. Embiid doesn’t need to be an absolute star for the Sixers to be great. But they do need Simmons to reach his potential because of the injury uncertainty of his teammate. You go beyond those two, and you have top pick Markelle Fultz. Despite Fultz’s star power being on display for his one season at Washington, he is often hidden behind the unique physical specimens that are Simmons and Embiid.

Truth is, he’s even more insurance in case the two others don’t work out. But if they fall, and Fultz turns out to be a star, the rebuild becomes a flop. Sure, the Sixers still have decent future assets. And sure, the Sixers have cap space to reel in what has thus far been an elusive top free agent.

But cap space and future draft picks have never been an issue for this rebuild. Building a foundation and legitimate core has been. And without the health of Embiid and Simmons, then the Sixers fall back to phase one, just with a better starting point.

So yes, the Sixers are projected to be a lot better. They do hold the league’s most promising core. But they are still in a fragile point of the rebuild, and it comes down to health. Of course, that’s every team’s worry. But Philadelphia’s infamous history is what intensifies the situation.

The front office will still have to strategically use that cap space to support this young cast, but now it lies on the battered feet of two young generational players. Excitement should be warranted, but cautiousness should be understood. What’s set in stone is that the Sixers will be at least battling for a playoff spot, but there is still a lot of unproven ground to feel completely confident in the success of this rebuild.

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For now, fans in Philadelphia should enjoy the moment. The team will reach great heights this year, and considering the rough type of basketball fans endured for the past few seasons, it will be a nice short-term reward.