The Process of the Philadelphia 76ers is in motion. Young players are on the roster and now need the time to develop. The Philadelphia 76ers FA moves buy them that time
NBA rookies do not light it up. Whether they are the first pick or the 60th pick, the NBA is a tough sport of adult men who earn their living playing the game year in and year out. Toss a 19 year old against that field, one who has just arrived and is trying to sort out money, finances, new home, new friends, new routine, and even a new bed every night, and you can’t expect the most of those players.
It takes time.
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When the Philadelphia 76ers entered the 2016 NBA off-season, there were two paths to take: win now, or build a roster that compliments the needs of this young roster and gives them the time to learn and grow. Wisely, they have chosen the second path.
With the signing of guards Jerryd Bayless, Gerald Henderson, and Sergio Rodriguez, it’s okay to look at their box score statistics and begin to draw a conclusion. Where you fail is if you stop there.
What the team is trying to do tho, is not pad the stats sheet. The team is trying to build a culture of paying it forward, of acting like you’ve been successful, of team before individual. Sadly, that type of construction is not easily done in the NBA. In the 2016 Free Agency, role players were offered max contracts. Teams in the “win now” mode justify the urge to splurge by focusing on the dynamics of a team on next season only. That leads to disaster in the subsequent years – whether on committing too many salary dollars prematurely leaving none for existing player contracts, or trading tomorrow’s draft picks for a player who may help the team in the present.
The hare.
Showing discipline, using the NBA Draft effectively, growing young talent, and filling in the spaces with specific talents from veteran players is a slower process.
The tortoise.
Next: Free Agency is Not Free
Free Agency is Not Free
Free Agency is not like the simulated versions. The Philadelphia 76ers dangled short term (one, two, and three year deals) with plenty of cash under the noses of NBA free agents. But those players wanted more years than the Philadelphia 76ers could afford. Why?
Free Agency is more than paying players whatever they want. Do that, and you end up where the team was in 2013. Nerlens Noel comes off contract in 2017. Joel Embiid off contract in 2018. Jahlil Okafor off contract in 2019. Ben Simmons off contract in 2020. Had the Philadelphia 76ers signed a Harrison Barnes to a four year max deal (which he would have rejected due to the team’s current record after the Dallas Mavericks submitted their offer sheet), that contract would have adversely impacted the ability of the team to retain all three of their talented centers.
Having seen what the NBA market is for centers in this year’s free agency, that would have made everything very complicated going forward.
Instead, the Philadelphia 76ers were judicious in their approach. No matter who the team signed, the player is not perfect. Elite players never gave the Philadelphia 76ers a second look. Without a universally applicable skill set, the 76ers were forced to shop specific skill sets – especially true for the back court veterans just signed to the team.
What were those skill sets? Shooting from three-point distance, the ability to pass the ball effectively in traffic, verstality, and the ability to move without the ball.
Next: Bayless
Jerryd Bayless
Jerryd Bayless is a versatile guard who play run the offense at the point, or play off the ball. He’s not perfect, but at $9 million a year, the Sixers were no where near perfection in their outlay. What he does is shoot three-pointers, can run an offense, can defend point guards, and eventually contribute as a shooting guard. Why? Because the Philadelphia 76ers are grooming Ben Simmons to take over the starting role at point guard later this year.
"When I say point guard I mean point guard. You’ve got the ball. You could call him Isiah Thomas, the old Isiah Thomas of my generation. You could call him Chris Paul. I mean point guard point guard. There are times I think that he can be a point guard.”- Brett Brown"
That’s a very limiting constraint to the Philadelphia 76ers, and one that needs to be explained. No top point guard wants to take a roster spot on a team which is planning to replace him at the point within a year. That dynamic is likely to cause many offers from the Philadelphia 76ers to fall on deaf ears.
Bayless is not just a consolation prize. He can show incredible range from three point distance, as long as it’s from the right side of the arc. From that right side, he shoots at 50 percent accuracy or better. From the left side, his accuracy falls to 34 percent or better.
Bayless becomes a good “fit” for the offense which is loading up on Simmons, Saric, and others who will make ball movement as natural as dribbling. He will move off-ball , moving to position to set up and shoot. That is a great fit for the offense about to develop with this team.
Next: Henderson
Gerald Henderson
Gerald Henderson is another versatile veteran guard. Once more, checking out averages, stats, and box scores simply does not tell the tale. Looking at his stats, you will see a player who averaged 19.9 minutes per game, 8.7 points per game, 2.9 rebounds, 1.0 assists, and .54 blocks on a per game basis. Nothing to get excited about on that front.
But Henderson plays with passion. He’s a true leader of any team he joins, because he speaks up when the chips are down, firing up his teammates to face the opponent on the court. He plays with the passion of Philadelphia.
"‘ “It’s still our game!” , “This game means more to us than them.” , “Keep executing. Keep rebounding. Push the ball. Stay with our game” As they kept creeping back in the game and then when they went ahead, the timeouts … guys would be quiet. Heads were down. Nobody was saying stuff … in those times you need to be even more vocal; that’s when we need it. You can see sometimes guys get quiet, they get in their head thinking about stuff. And I’m like, nah. Play how we know how to play. Forget what they are doing, we need to continue how we are playing.’- Gerald Henderson describing his role in the team huddle as a Portland Trailblazer"
Those impromptu pep talks do not show up on the stats sheet. Nor do his abilities to bring along young talent like Nik Stauskas, Hollis Thompson, or even Timothe Luwawu-Cabarrot. But he will, because that is who he is.
He is also a good defender on the wing.
His teammate had this to say about him after a hard fought win where Henderson put up a season high 19 points
"“I told him at the end of the game … that he’s a soldier. He is one of those guys when it really gets tough out there, he’s one of those guys you know you can count on. When the game gets a little rough, the other team gets going a little bit and you are up against it, some guys get quiet. Some guys shy away from it. But he got louder in the huddle.”- Damian Lillard"
Those are the types of players who are priceless. You want them on the Philadelphia 76ers. Firey, competitive, passionate players elevate the play of all teammates.
Next: Hernandez
Sergio Rodriguez
Sergio Rodriguez is a unique signing in that he was signed away from Euroleague’s Real Madrid team. He is a point guard who is a pick-and-roll specialist with a flair for passing.
Rodriguez played with the Blazers from 2006-2009, then was traded to Sacramento during the 2009 NBA Draft. He later played for the New York Knicks. He played 219 games for the Blazers, including 14 starts, and averaged 3.6 points and 2.9 assists.
We covered him earlier as he was signed to the team. He shoots 45.2 percent from the floor, with a 40.9 percent from the three-point range. He averages 10.9 points per game, 2.2 rebounds per game, 6.2 assists per game, In the Euroleague playoffs, he scored a whopping 66.7% of his treys.
Rodriguez is a player who can translate NBA and Euroleague for the rookies on the team, particularly as we continue to take on a more international flavor to the roster. He can slide into a point guard role and excel at passing the ball, or play of the ball. He is a superb passer, and ensures players who move will get shots. Combining his passing with that of Ben Simmons and Dario Saric, and you have the makings of Monty Python’s Flying Circus.
But he should project as the starting point guard we’ve been looking to replace ever since point guard Ish signed on with Detroit. Rodriguez’s fast pass will kick start the team, forcing players to move or be passed over.
Rodriguez is not the volume shooter that Smith was, nor does he hesitate to shoot like McConnell. He makes the right decision where to go with the ball or keep it and drive for the shot.
Next: Better Than Last Year's Approach
Far Better Than Last Year’s Approach
The 2015-2016 roster was a thesis paper case study of how NOT to build a roster to begin an NBA season. The team entered the new year with no starting point guard. The roster had shooting guard Isaiah Canaan, undrafted rookie point guard T.J. McConnell, and injured guard Tony Wroten and Kendall Marshall. What happened is that Canaan never became a point guard, Wroten never returned from injury 100%, and Marshall simply did not pan out. The team, for all the challenges of the position, found it’s best solution in the hands of undrafted and learning as he played McConnell.
Finally, the team traded for a true point guard, Ish Smith, from the New Orleans Pelicans, and found some success. Upon Ish Smith‘s arrival, T.J. McConnell‘s game improved considerable, even in a reduced role. He was able to watch, learn, and then apply. That is the key to NBA mentoring.
When the Philadelphia 76ers sign players for the back court, if the expectation was to sign elite players, that was a self fulfilling disappointment. The team has a specific scheme, and only certain players fit that scheme. Head Coach Brett Brown has preached the philosophy of Pace, Space and Pass constantly for three years, but seldom had the players with the proper skill-sets to deliver in that scheme.
Now they are much closer.
T.J. McConnell is a solid backup at point guard, Hollis Thompson and Nik Stauskas are talented and developing shooting guards. None are ready to play in the NBA as a 30+ minutes starter.
Next: Carl Landry Case Study
Carl Landry Case Study
When the team accepted power forward Carl Landry in the deal which brought draft picks and shooting guard Nik Stauskas to the team, he was a 31 year-old power forward who came off the bench for the Sacramento Kings. Despite coming off wrist surgery and returning to an active NBA roster two months into the season, he contributed in a very positive way. He shot 55.6 percent from the field, 46.2 percent from three-point range, and chipped in 9.8 points.
The only true “month” of his play came in March 2016, where he appeared in all 15 games, averaged 19.4 minutes per game, and shot 50 percent from the floor to contribute 11.5 points per game. He was forced into action as both centers Jahlil Okafor and Nerlens Noel were injured.
The Philadelphia 76ers did not win games in March. So by the standards of many, his retention was not worth the roster spot.
That ignores the value of having Carl Landry on the team entirely.
You see, Landry worked out with and helped Richaun Holmes. That was not a one time event, but a season’s worth of workouts, conversations, and opportunity to learn when a coach was not around. He also worked with Nerlens Noel, Jahlil Okafor, and to some part, Joel Embiid as well.
All for the sake of team.
Next: What Are We Building?
What Are We Building?
Let’s be honest, not one of us truly knows exactly what the Philadelphia 76ers are building right now. We can infer, guess, and conclude; assert, hypothesize, and observe; but only head coach Brett Brown, president Bryan Colangelo, and a handful of front office executives who are working hard to make it all happen.
The team will most likely be a ball movement type of offense, with synchronized passing, off ball motion, and ball movement which will confuse the best of defenses. And with the team bringing in proficiency at shooting from range, that movement should translate into open three point shots.
But the team still maintains players who can slow down the play. Holmes, Grant and Noel boast defensive skills that are at a minimum above average. With Henderson, Bayless and Hernandez, defense on the backside has been addressed as well.
This is not a championship team yet, and thankfully, the front office understands that so far. Yes, better players are available at much longer terms, much higher dollars, and may still reject the team due to last season’s record.
Building a winning basketball team is far different than going to the movies. Marquis names truly add very little to the competitive nature of a younger rostered team. Those players have paid their dues, and want the gold now. Asking them to help teammates along is simply poor planning.
Next: Philadelphia 76ers: Ben Simmons is a Basketball Wizard (VIDEO)
This is a new season, and the team has become competitive once more. Let’s take it at a steady pace, grow our players, and make moves when they are necessary.