Comparing the Philadelphia 76ers’ Rebuild to the Nets’ Rebuild

Mar 15, 2016; Brooklyn, NY, USA; Philadelphia 76ers guard Ish Smith (1) reaches for the ball as Brooklyn Nets forward Thaddeus Young (30) defends during the fourth quarter at Barclays Center. Brooklyn Nets won 131-114. Mandatory Credit: Anthony Gruppuso-USA TODAY Sports
Mar 15, 2016; Brooklyn, NY, USA; Philadelphia 76ers guard Ish Smith (1) reaches for the ball as Brooklyn Nets forward Thaddeus Young (30) defends during the fourth quarter at Barclays Center. Brooklyn Nets won 131-114. Mandatory Credit: Anthony Gruppuso-USA TODAY Sports
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Mar 15, 2016; Brooklyn, NY, USA; Brooklyn Nets center Brook Lopez (11) shoots over Philadelphia 76ers forward Nerlens Noel (4) during the third quarter at Barclays Center. Brooklyn Nets won 131-114. Mandatory Credit: Anthony Gruppuso-USA TODAY Sports
Mar 15, 2016; Brooklyn, NY, USA; Brooklyn Nets center Brook Lopez (11) shoots over Philadelphia 76ers forward Nerlens Noel (4) during the third quarter at Barclays Center. Brooklyn Nets won 131-114. Mandatory Credit: Anthony Gruppuso-USA TODAY Sports

What If the Sixers Copied the Nets’ Rebuild Part 2

The second major change would be the Jrue Holiday trade never happening. Jrue Holiday made the 2013 Eastern Conference All-Star team and averaged 17.7 points, 8 assists, and 4.2 rebounds per game during the 2012-13 season, and this version of the Sixers would try to sell him as the NBA’s next great point guard. If you replace Nerlens Noel’s rookie contract with Holiday’s contract, the Sixers would enter the 2013 offseason with a salary of $46.1 million and $12.3 million in cap space.

Left overs from the 2012-13 season would include Thaddeus Young, Kwame Brown, Lavoy Allen, Evan Turner, Spencer Hawes, Arnett Moultrie, Jason Richardson, and Holiday (Bynum’s contract is not added into the $46.1 million salary, because the Sixers wouldn’t re-sign him until after they did all other free agency moves. The NBA allows teams to go over the salary cap to re-sign their own players, so the Sixers would fill their remaining cap room with unrestricted free agents that played with a different team the previous season then re-sign Bynum).

Next: What if Sixers Copied the Nets Rebuild Part 3