The Philadelphia 76ers are on yet another losing streak, but that’s no reason for Sixers fans to panic about the team’s future.
The Philadelphia 76ers have now lost 13 games in a row, dating back to their overtime loss against the Sacramento Kings before the All-Star break. With any other team in the NBA, this would cause a panic among the fan base. With the Sixers, it’s actually pleasing some fans who thought the team was winning too much. This losing streak is still nothing compared to how the boys in red, white, and blue started their season — an 18 games losing streak.
The Sixers are in an intense race for the worst record in the NBA. The reasoning behind this is that the worst team has the best odds in the draft lottery of getting the number 1 overall pick in this upcoming draft, and the name that’s projected to be attached to that pick is either Brandon Ingram or (in most cases) Ben Simmons. Both players could be huge additions to the Sixers’ roster as they look to finally be competitive in the next few years.
The draft is just one small reason that Sixers fans shouldn’t be panicking. Most fans are perfectly fine with the losing, and for good reason, but some are starting to get a little bit frustrated with all of the losing. I think it’s time for those fans to chill out and have some faith in the culture that’s been implemented over the past few seasons.
Next: Colangelo's Time to Shine Approaching
Jerry Colangelo’s time to shine is coming up
Jerry Colangelo has been a polarizing character in the Sixers’ front office since being brought onto the team earlier this season. Many thought his vision was a 180 degree turn from Hinkie’s, and that he was going to come in and ruin everything the Sixers fans had to wait for over the last few years. Colangelo does have some differing viewpoints with Hinkie, but so far I haven’t seen any real evidence that there’s been a major power trip in the front office.
Colangelo’s biggest asset, and most attractive reasoning for bringing him onto the team is his “large rolodex” or his huge amount of NBA relationships. Colangelo has been in the league for a long, long time in several different positions. Throughout this time he has cultivated connections with other owners, general mangers, coaches, and player agents. Most of his relationships are said to be good ones that should help the Sixers.
As the team looks towards free agency to help build their roster, it’s clear that Colangelo’s time to shine is finally coming. Hinkie has specialized in the draft, getting the Sixers different players, assets, and future picks to work with, and Colangelo will be heading the free agency front. This two-headed monster is one to get excited about, and even though the free-agent market isn’t too deep this year, there could be some major moves made with Colangelo flexing his connections.
Next: The Odds Are in Our Favor
The Sixers have the best odds to have a great night on draft night
The biggest part of the rebuild so far has been the NBA Draft, and this year’s draft could be the biggest one yet, if the ping-pong balls fall in the Sixers favor. Philly has acquired several great players over the last few years. Some are still here, and a few are gone. Joel Embiid, Nerlens Noel, Michael Carter-Williams, and Jahlil Okafor are the biggest names, and all players that currently are, or hopefully will be making big names for themselves in the NBA.
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This year could be even bigger though, with Ben Simmons and Brandon Ingram slated to go first and second in this season’s draft. The Sixers were content with a top 5 draft pick last year, but this year, they really need that first or second pick. It was looking like they would have a possible 4 first round draft picks this year, but the Los Angeles Lakers were worse than expected this season, which may lead to the Sixers not being able to claim their protected pick.
Luckily, the Sixers have lost enough to keep the Lakers out of dead last, and have out-tanked everyone around them. The Lakers were making threatening moves at taking those best overall chances at the top pick, but as of right now the Lakers are 5.5 games behind the Sixers for the best chances, and the Sixers show no signs of letting up.
It doesn’t help the Lakers that they pulled out a win over the league’s best team, the Golden State Warriors, a game that should have been a sure loss.
The Sixers currently have the best odds at the number one overall pick with a 25 percent (or 1 in 4 if you like looking at it that way) chance of getting the top pick. They also have a 64.3 percent chance (or 1 in 1.6) of getting in the highly coveted top 3.
The Lakers have to give the Sixers their pick if it falls out of the top 3 due to last year’s Michael Carter-Williams trade, and although the odds aren’t in the Sixers’ favor here, they aren’t completely out-of-this world odds. There is a 44.2 percent chance that the Sixers will get the Lakers’ pick this year at 4 or worse, or 2 in 2.26 odds.
We won’t know for sure how the draft night will shape up as far as order until the lottery in May, but the numbers definitely are shaping up to be in the Sixers’ favor.
Next: Player Development
Players have had a chance to see the floor due to this losing and develop
One of the most underrated parts of compiling a roster designed to lose is that players who probably wouldn’t get much more than an average of 5 minutes per game on any other team get a true chance to shine on the Sixers’ roster. It’s hard to imagine where players like Jerami Grant, Hollis Thompson, and arguably even Isaiah Canaan and JaKarr Sampson would be without having a chance to play on the Sixers.
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One other name that comes to mind with getting a chance to shine on the Sixers and running with it is rookie T.J. McConnell. McConnell went undrafted this season, but came onto the Sixers in the preseason looking to shine, and shine he did. He kept outdoing the other backcourt members that seemed like locks (Pierre Jackson was one of those players) and by the time the Sixers were a handful of games in, he was named the starter. No one in the NBA saw it coming, and McConnell wouldn’t have gotten an opportunity like this anywhere else. Now, if the Sixers didn’t have the room to take a gamble on him, he wouldn’t be worth anything if they wanted to trade him. But now, they could get a second-round draft pick for him.
Jerami Grant is another one of these players who has gotten lots of exposure. Grant leads the Sixers — who have the most blocks in the NBA — in blocks this year, and has been an incredible defender. He has great length and can block a shot from anywhere on the floor.
Throughout the rest of this season, as we see Jahlil Okafor taking lower minutes to keep him healthy, we will probably see Richaun Holmes play more, and his value goes up every time he sees the floor. The future of some of these players is probably not with the Sixers, but fans can get excited that they have players with rising value that can be leveraged in trades in the offseason or during next season.
Next: Trade Assets
The Sixers and Hinkie still have assets to work with in the future
Speaking of trades, the Sixers still have lots of assets to work with in the future. It’s no secret that the Sixers’ frontcourt is clogged right now, and will continue to be clogged. But it’s being looked at as a curse, and not a blessing. It’s not clogged with lackluster players, it’s clogged with talent. Jahlil Okafor is one of the best rookies in this incredible draft class, Nerlens Noel has put up a good first two seasons, and Joel Embiid is expected to be special.
On top of that, the Sixers have Dario Saric coming over from Europe to join their frontcourt, and possibly Ben Simmons if the draft goes their way.
With all of this talent, and the fact that Noel and Okafor don’t exactly fit together, one of them will have to be moved. This is often seen as a bad thing, but I believe it needs to be seen as a good thing.
Teams want Noel and Okafor. They were inquired for at the trade deadline. These are good players that can yield great return value for the Sixers. They just need to find a deal that fits for them.
To me, the assets the Sixers have makes the future very bright, amongst all of the losing.
Next: Winning is SO Next Year
We can always win next year
The most important thing for Sixers fans to remember is that this season is almost over. We’ve endured the worst of it all, as the team is supposed to start winning next season. With the roster finally starting to look like anything at all, we can rest easy knowing that winning is right around the corner.
Three seasons of watching awful basketball are not for nothing. Every fan that has endured this will be rewarded tenfold with success. The assets, the draft preparation, the free agency preparation, it’s all going to come together this upcoming season.
Now, we must prepare ourselves. We shouldn’t be expecting a championship in year one of the turnaround, nor should we be expecting a playoff visit. But we shouldn’t have low expectations either. We want to see this team keep up with the teams fighting for playoff spots, and we want to see them keeping every game close. Given how they’ve already done that even this season, that should be no problem for them next year with even better players included on their roster.
Next: Sixers Bringing Fat Wallets to Free Agency
This last part of this season seems torturous, but don’t get down on yourselves, Sixers fans. The best is yet to come.