The Sixer Sense
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Philadelphia 76ers FA Buys Team Time To Develop Youth

By Bret Stuter

Jun 24, 2016; Philadelphia, PA, USA; Philadelphia 76ers number one overall draft pick Ben Simmons (25) and number twenty-fourth overall draft pick Timothe Luwawu-Cabarrot (20) pose for a photo at a press conference at the Philadelphia College Of Osteopathic Medicine. Mandatory Credit: Bill Streicher-USA TODAY Sports
Jun 24, 2016; Philadelphia, PA, USA; Philadelphia 76ers number one overall draft pick Ben Simmons (25) and number twenty-fourth overall draft pick Timothe Luwawu-Cabarrot (20) pose for a photo at a press conference at the Philadelphia College Of Osteopathic Medicine. Mandatory Credit: Bill Streicher-USA TODAY Sports /
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The Process of the Philadelphia 76ers is in motion. Young players are on the roster and now need the time to develop. The Philadelphia 76ers FA moves buy them that time

NBA rookies do not light it up. Whether they are the first pick or the 60th pick, the NBA is a tough sport of adult men who earn their living playing the game year in and year out. Toss a 19 year old against that field, one who has just arrived and is trying to sort out money, finances, new home, new friends, new routine, and even a new bed every night, and you can’t expect the most of those players.

It takes time.

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When the Philadelphia 76ers entered the 2016 NBA off-season, there were two paths to take:  win now, or build a roster that compliments the needs of this young roster and gives them the time to learn and grow.  Wisely, they have chosen the second path.

With the signing of guards Jerryd Bayless, Gerald Henderson, and Sergio Rodriguez, it’s okay to look at their box score statistics and begin to draw a conclusion.  Where you fail is if you stop there.

What the team is trying to do tho, is not pad the stats sheet.  The team is trying to build a culture of paying it forward, of acting like you’ve been successful, of team before individual.  Sadly, that type of construction is not easily done in the NBA.  In the 2016 Free Agency, role players were offered max contracts.  Teams in the “win now” mode justify the urge to splurge by focusing on the dynamics of a team on next season only.  That leads to disaster in the subsequent years – whether on committing too many salary dollars prematurely leaving none for existing player contracts, or trading tomorrow’s draft picks for a player who may help the team in the present.

The hare.

Showing discipline, using the NBA Draft effectively, growing young talent, and filling in the spaces with specific talents from veteran players is a slower process.

The tortoise.

Next: Free Agency is Not Free