The Sixer Sense
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Philadelphia 76ers Hope or Hype?

By Bret Stuter

Apr 10, 2016; Philadelphia, PA, USA; Philadelphia 76ers head coach Brett Brown goes over a play with his team during the third quarter of the game against the Milwaukee Bucks at the Wells Fargo Center. The Milwaukee Bucks won 109-108 in OT. Mandatory Credit: John Geliebter-USA TODAY Sports
Apr 10, 2016; Philadelphia, PA, USA; Philadelphia 76ers head coach Brett Brown goes over a play with his team during the third quarter of the game against the Milwaukee Bucks at the Wells Fargo Center. The Milwaukee Bucks won 109-108 in OT. Mandatory Credit: John Geliebter-USA TODAY Sports /
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With a new team, loaded with a first round draft pick and two red-shirted rookies, there is a lot of optimism with the Philadelphia 76ers this season.

A tale of two cities. On the one hand, the treetop level analysis of national grade media have given the Philadelphia 76ers a virtual “meh” for the team’s projections in the upcoming season. Coming from a 10-72 record, the best those “experts” see out of this team is 20 wins, tops.

On the other hand, those who follow the team understand the true vacuum of the roster last season, and have preached about it to anyone and everyone who will listen.  Last season was not just a team of young players, but was snakebitten with injuries, bad roster construction, too little time to cross train players and too many players needing development.

The team had head coach Brett Brown. No veteran players (Carl Landry did not join the team until December) and no starting point guard (Ish Smith did not join the team until Christmas).  In that context, 20 wins seems a norm without any roster improvements.

So now the season is about to start, and the projections and pundits will weigh in with their two sense.  But in the battle of the hearts and minds of each and every Philadelphia 76ers fan out there, each of you will be tasked with decyphering whether this is a team of hope, or hype.

Ultimately, each article, narrative, or dissertation is targeting you, the reader.  While much will be information, the spin of each story will give cause to hope, or to simply dash that optimism as unnecessary hype.