Apr 13, 2015; Philadelphia, PA, USA; Philadelphia 76ers guard
JaKarr Sampson(9) is fouled by Milwaukee Bucks guard
O.J. Mayo(00) during the second half at Wells Fargo Center. The Bucks won 107-97. Mandatory Credit: Bill Streicher-USA TODAY Sports
Sixers Waiting For The Light Switch
When the snow falls in Alaska, the mountains become burdened with tons of white powdery snow. Falling snow, each barely measureable on a scale, piles up until the peaks are buried with the stuff. Eventually, the last snowflake falls, the final weight upon a myriad of other snowflakes that now act as one, bringing the force of everything together as one massive energetic cascade upon rocks and trees and unfortunately any person in its way.
Landslide.
I can point to the signing of power forward Christian Wood, the return of Jerami Grant, the eventual restoration to full health of Joel Embiid, the intensive training of Nerlens Noel, the indomitable attitude of Pierre Jackson, the international renown of Dario Saric, the youthful energy of Jahlil Okafor, the patient wisdom of head coach Brett Brown, or even the construction of the new training facility on the Camden waterfront, touted as the “biggest, largest and best practice facility in the history of the NBA.” I can point to each and every event, change and action taken so far, and you would be correct in responding: “So what?”
The weight of the snowflake.
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As each move happens, I read accurate reports that profess that the Sixers are taking “long shot risks” and can afford to because “they are dropping coins into a quarter slot machine”. The payout in that analogy is a $20 jackpot. Hardly worth an effort. Perhaps its because the perspective is too narrow in scope. When thinking in terms of the Philadelphia 76ers, the plan is not immediate gratification. The plan is not “what have you done for me lately?” timing. This #TrustTheProcess has already taken on a multi-year dimension that has covered two years and even the most optimistic of us know it will take a minimum of two more. Julius Irving discussed this time line on Sirius radio:
"When they acquired the team in 2012 maybe, I think the talk was about seven years. Seven years. So, I think it’s still on that same timeline.(the playoffs?) No. To be good. To be good. To be formidable. To be a contender. That’s probably 18-19.”"
Far too many measure time in absolutes. The watching of a second hand sweep across the face of a clock is a sure fire way to slow down the passing of time. Time seems to go slower when you watch it pass. What was that wivestale? “A watched teapot never boils”.
But here we are, checking the calendar, the day, the week, the month, the season, and asking ourselves, is it time yet? Remember when you were young and were awaiting the passing of the school year? From the first day of school, we each quietly counted down the days left in that school year. If you are currently in school, don’t do it. It’s water torture. Looking back now, at my advanced age, my entire scholastic life seems like I blinked and it was over. Relative time.
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Eventually, the path will turn. Someday the team will click. Success breeds success. There are many appropriate quotes to add here, but I will limit myself to just two. But the payout is not just a jackpot of several games won. This jackpot is the big one, – the ultimate payout.
The perfect time to start something never arrives.
Oh and about that light switch. When you are in an unfamiliar dark room, you have no idea when you will find the light switch. Right now, the Sixers are just in an unfamiliar dark room. Eventually, they will find the switch to succeed. When it flips, it will be light. Not dusk. Not dawn. Fully lit. That second quote?
The heart of a champion is a light switch that is always on
We are forced to stand by while the Sixer wating for the light switch. When they do, we’ll forget that we were once a struggling team.
Well, some of us will forget.