Sixers Rebuild Year Two: A Smashing Success

Mar 11, 2015; Philadelphia, PA, USA; Philadelphia 76ers guard Ish Smith (5) after scoring against the Chicago Bulls at Wells Fargo Center. The Bulls won 104-95. Mandatory Credit: Bill Streicher-USA TODAY Sports

Thomas Robinson and Ish Smith came to the Sixers around the same time, each having similar rap sheets in the NBA. Both players were in their mid-20s struggling to find a permanent home. Additionally, both players were dealt around the trade deadline and subsequently released. The Sixers claimed both players and they would end up having yet another thing in common: resurrecting their careers in Philadelphia.

Thomas Robinson was a highly touted prospect at Kansas, which led to him being the fifth overall pick in the 2012 Draft. But his lack of offensive development, both in the post and with his shot, led to him getting inconsistent minutes and bouncing around the league in his first few seasons. The Sixers would be his fourth team in just three seasons, but in his short time in Philly T-Rob showed that he can be a rotation big in the NBA.

Robinson does two things very well: hustle and rebound. The former Kansas product is all over the court when he checks into the game. He can be seen diving on the floor for loose balls and wrestling other players, sometimes even his teammates, for rebounds. Robinson uses that same reckless attitude on the boards as he averaged 15.0 rebounds per-36 minutes with the Sixers.

Robinson will make boneheaded plays now and then, but he has an identifiable NBA skill in rebounding. He may not be able to operate in the post or hit consistent shots from the perimeter, but he can be effective diving to the hoop off of picks and on the offensive glass. He will be a restricted free-agent this summer and at age 24 he should receive a good amount of interest from around the league. He has expressed his interest in returning next season, and there should be interest on the Sixers side in bringing T-Rob back as a back-up big.

Unlike Robinson, Ish Smith’s arrival to Philly garnered a lukewarm response from Sixers fans. Smith has bounced around the league with Philly being his eighth team in five seasons. Smith had gained a reputation around the league as a player who couldn’t shoot (39.1 percent on his career) and was at best a team’s third point-guard.

But when Ish Smith began to get minutes with the Sixers, he showed Philly fans something they had not witnessed in the past one and a half seasons: what the 76ers offense looks like with an actual point guard at the helm. Smith, who may be one of the quickest players in the league, used his speed to get by down defenders, break down the defense, and kick the ball out to open shooters. If it seemed like Nerlens Noel had a low amount of alley-oops tossed his way in the first half of the season, the arrival of Smith sparked a connection that generated many highlight reel plays.

It became apparent how important Smith was to the Sixers offense when the team would struggle with Isaiah Canaan running the show. While Ish shot the ball better in his time in Philly, he is still a below average shooter. But as a set shooter, Brett Brown believes that Ish’s shot can be worked on and improved.

He may not be the franchise point guard, but the Sixers are definitely intrigued in Smith and will consider bringing him back next season. It wouldn’t surprise me, nor would I be against it, if Ish was the starting point guard next October.

Next: Player Development