Philadelphia 76ers 2016 Plan Starting to Take Shape

The Philadelphia 76ers plan is full of variables, but some of those variables are starting to become known, and the offseason plan is starting to take shape.

The Philadelphia 76ers rebuilding plan has been full of variables ever since Sam Hinkie took over as general manager. Being prepared is always a good thing to do, but sometimes that’s not completely possible.

When building an NBA franchise from the ground — no, the basement — up, there’s a lot of unknowns, a lot of variables that can change over the course of the rebuild. The unpredictability of other teams motives, lottery balls, as well as players and how well they will perform all have to be taken into account when making a plan for success that can be considered viable for several seasons.

We saw Sam Hinkie’s draft plan get switched up at the last second on draft night last year, when the Los Angeles Lakers took D’Angelo Russell instead of Jahlil Okafor. The Sixers called an audible, and moved the plan forward without Russell and with Okafor, an audible that some believe may have changed the rebuild — for better of for worse — completely.

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This season, things are a bit different. The Sixers seem to be on the edge of relying on free agency versus relying on the draft, but still have plenty of draft picks to utilize in the first round. The Sixers have the best chances in the NBA at landing the first overall pick as well as being in the top three on draft night.

As we get closer and closer to the end of this season, the plan for this upcoming offseason is becoming less variable-filled, and more clear to the front office. As teams get eliminated from the March Madness bracket, top-tier players are deciding that they are ready to move onto the NBA, and hiring agents.

The top prospect, Ben Simmons, hired an agent reportedly on Monday, and Kris Dunn will follow him shortly after, according to recent reports.

Additionally, the NBA Draft Lottery is coming up in about a month, and this will help the Sixers to form a solid game plan. They will finally see where their picks end up in the draft, who they can count on being available, and who they should plan on bringing in next season as a rookie.

The Sixers made out great in the draft last season, despite being third overall. They snagged a high-scoring rookie who was able to impact offensively right away. They could get lucky this year and potentially have the top overall pick as well as the fourth overall pick if the Lakers’ and their ping-pong balls fall in the correct direction.

After that, they can decide — based on projections — if it’s worth it for them to dive into the free agent market. By bringing in Jerry Colangelo to the front office, I think they’ve made it clear that they’ve deemed this season the first one where they actively search for players to help them win in free agency, but their draft stock will help solidify that. If they don’t get the first or second overall pick, then they have to be active in free agency.

Even if they do land one of those two picks, the Sixers should still heavily consider free agency as a means to expand their roster this offseason.

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All of these are part of the plan. It’s tough to sit down and draw up a roadmap for the next several years when you’re starting off as general manager, and Hinkie probably didn’t see a lot of things coming. But as far as this offseason goes, things are starting to take some shape.

Philadelphia 76ers 2016 Offseason Plan Starting to Take Shape

By Josh Wilson | Mar 23, 2016

The Philadelphia 76ers plan is full of variables, but some of those variables are starting to become known, and the offseason plan is starting to take shape.

More from The Sixer Sense