Losing Jimmy Butler, J.J. Redick somehow made 76ers stronger contenders

Believe it or not, the Philadelphia 76ers appear to be stronger contenders in the Eastern Conference, despite the losses of Jimmy Butler and J.J. Redick.

Between watching J.J. Redick sign with the New Orleans Pelicans to Jimmy Butler meeting with the Miami Heat, some Philadelphia 76ers fans were beginning to hit the panic button on the first night of free agency.

For a team with more questions than answers heading into the offseason, the Sixers seemed like a team that would hit the ground running in free agency to make sure they remained a serious contender in the Eastern Conference.

Instead, the frustration was beginning to build up among the fan base, as social media was filled with all sorts of criticism towards Elton Brand due to the fact that all these teams were making all sorts of moves, yet Philadelphia was remaining quiet for the most part.

But once the announcement came that Tobias Harris would be returning to the team on a hefty five-year, $180 million deal, everything became better for the Sixers in a way that no one could have seen coming.

As great as it was to hear the announcements of deals for Harris and Mike Scott (two-year, $9.8 million), the real excitement came when it was discovered that Butler’s meeting with the Heat turned out better than expected.

Rightfully so after this past season’s playoff run, there was some anger from the fan base over hearing the news that Butler would be sent to Miami through a sign-and-trade in exchange for Josh Richardson.

In comparison, there’s no question that Butler is the better player over Richardson, but also the argument can be made the former Miami star is underrated, and will come to Philadelphia on a favorable contract.

However, there were still a good amount of fans that weren’t 100 percent on board with this move since this new Philadelphia squad didn’t seem to be anywhere close to the group from this past season that reached the semifinals of the playoffs.

Then all of a sudden, it was announced shortly after the Butler news that Al Horford would be joining the Sixers on a four-year, $109 million deal, providing Philadelphia with a new potential starting lineup that would arguably be a major upgrade from last season.

By losing Redick and Butler, the Sixers will most likely enter the 2019-20 season with a starting lineup that consists of Horford, Richardson, Harris, Joel Embiid, and Ben Simmons, which should put the rest of the Eastern Conference on high alert.

Philadelphia as a team obviously still has plenty to prove since nothing is guaranteed when it comes to the NBA, but after seeing the results from the first night of free agency, who would have thought the Sixers would find a way to get better without Redick and Butler?

Obviously, Sixers fans will forever be grateful for what Redick and Butler did for this team, but the key moves already made have turned this team into an even strong contender in the Eastern Conference, as crazy as that sounds to believe.