Philadelphia 76ers Pursue Ben Simmons w Brandon Ingram?

By Bret Stuter | May 19, 2016

Feb 8, 2016; Philadelphia, PA, USA; Philadelphia 76ers center Joel Embiid practices prior to a game against the Los Angeles Clippers at Wells Fargo Center. Mandatory Credit: Bill Streicher-USA TODAY Sports /

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With Optimism Welling For Joel Embiid‘s Return, Can The Philadelphia 76ers land both Ben Simmons w Brandon Ingram?

For a moment in time, pretend you are meeting the Philadelphia 76ers for the first time. No History. No pre-conceptions. You are simply looking at who the team has and trying to fit the pieces together here and now. That’s the position of Bryan Colangelo now. That’s where we are.

Now imagine the 76ers drafting both Ben Simmons w Brandon Ingram, and then completing a trade for Atlanta Hawks veteran point guard Jeff Teague? Are you starting to smile yet? It can happen, and it’s all here…

Now let’s begin. In the NBA, you either start at the post or you start at the point guard. Since we have been con-centered around the five position, let’s start there. Starting at the center position for the Philadelphia 76ers means Joel Embiid. How will his foot hold up? How will he handle NBA competition? Well, there is truly only one way to find out, put him in there.

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The promise of his skill set is daunting indeed: 7’2″ tall and 250 pounds, Joel Embiid is debuting into the NBA at age 22… a very good age in the minds of Bryan Colangelo to start an NBA career. Joel Embiid has been the crown jewel of Sam Hinkie’s tenure with the Philadelphia 76ers, a lightning rod of the angst of his antagonists, but an embodiment of the lengths and breadths Hinkie was willing to go in order to ensure the promise of Embiid had a fighting chance in the NBA.

Despite the detractors, the patience appears to have paid off this time for the Philadelphia 76ers in the knowledge that Joel Embiid will be ready for the 2016-2017 season.

The #3 Pick from the 2014 draft is gonna be ready too... Let's get it
— Joel “Troel” Embiid (@JoelEmbiid) May 18, 2016

That news was further confirmed by head coach Brett Brown who had indicated that the Cameroon center’s scan gave a “fantastic” result on May 17, 2016. With news like this percolating to the surface, it’s hard to deny that the first option at center will be Joel Embiid.

Now who fills the remaining roles of that team?

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