Philadelphia 76ers: Colangelos Speak Out on Past and Future

Jerry and Bryan Colangelo are speaking out about the past and future of the Philadelphia 76ers.

The Philadelphia 76ers rebuilding process seemed to come to a halt of sorts in mid-December. The Sixers called an emergency press conference, and in that press conference the team announced that they were bringing on Jerry Colangelo as Chairman of Basketball Operations to the team.

To many, this was a sign of disrespect to general manager Sam Hinkie and his “master plan.” Hinkie’s plan had seen some road bumps over the two and a half seasons that it had lived through at that point, but the supporters of the “Trust the Process” movement stood behind the plan and the man nonetheless. So when the team brought another man in to do essentially what Sam was already doing, it looked like the team was pushing Sam out.

For me, I saw promise with both men running the team. I saw a possible two-headed monster that could tackle the draft and free agency with ruthless angst. I must admit, I was wrong. I thought the team was preparing for a crucial third offseason of the Hinkie era, but instead, they were prepping for a push-out of Hinkie.

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It’s embarrassing that the ownership couldn’t just push Hinkie out without Jerry practically doing it for them. It really seems like they have no opinions whatsoever on the team, and they just let whoever is right in front of them tell them what their opinions should be.

Jerry was an obvious culprit of the pushing out of Sam, and on Thursday at the Draft Combine, Colangelo, who was present as a special advisor to the Sixers, reflected on what had happened between him, the Sixers, and Hinkie.

Colangelo said that ownership needed a change, and that the three straight seasons of losing really wore them down. Colangelo admitted that he, “kind of supported that.”

Jerry C: "You can't wait forever to compete. That gets old after a period, and I think ownership needed a change. I kind of supported that."
— max (@MaxOnTwitter) May 12, 2016

I really think it was more than him “kind of” supporting the effort to get Hinkie out. Colangelo really seemed to be the mastermind behind the effort. Of course, he would never come out and say that, and what happened behind closed doors will never be available to us.

It’s not all a fault of the ownership. Although there may have been a legitimate method to the madness that was behind the less-than-50 wins in three seasons, seeing that much losing from a team you have money invested in is tough. And to see the third season of the rebuild, a crucial year, mind you, be the worst year even with a stud of a rookie in Jahlil Okafor, it’s tough to see where the plan starts kicking into winning gear.

As Jerry was reflecting on the past of his involvement with the team, Bryan, his son, was speaking on the future of the team. Largely — being that he was at the NBA Draft Combine, after all — Bryan was speaking about short-term future, the draft of this year.

Bryan indicated to the media that he feels there may be a better use for the team’s two later picks that fall at 24th and 26th overall. Bryan indicated that you can only have so many developing players on a team that has tools to be successful. He then added that surrounding developing players with veteran players to guide them, as well as add their skill sets, would be a beneficial move.

Colangelo seemed to be implying that there is a possibility the team packages these two picks and trades for one, or a few veterans.

This only adds to the idea that this roster next season will look completely different compared to the one we saw on the floor this year. I think it may be one that will draw more than just the diehard fans in.

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These comments from father and son Colangelo show us that their mark on the organization is just beginning. Jerry stepped down from his “made-up” position when Bryan was hired, but it’s clear that his role as a special advisor to the team may be much more involved than fans thought it would be.