Philadelphia 76ers Force NBA Teams To Question Their Rebuilding
By Bret Stuter
The Philadelphia 76ers have at least one star player on their roster, and perhaps will discover two stars by seasons end. With a January 2017 record of 10-5, the other rebuilding teams must now determine if their rebuild can be as effective.
The Philadelphia 76ers never made a secret of their plans. Even if you did not read it in print, you could trace the pattern out with little difficulty. You see, the Philadelphia 76ers had almost nothing to work with when Sam Hinkie took over the team in 2013.
The team boasted a 34-48 record. But the team was dying from the roots up. And so, the Philadelphia 76ers refused to follow the NBA’s cadence, refused to try dealing veteran good players for younger “might be good” risks. In fact, the team converted virtually all the good players into draft picks, loaded up on young talent, and tried to see who the team could develop into quality NBA players.
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So many believe the team tanked to get the number one pick of the draft. Even at number one, the odds of finding a difference maker was too low. The front office of the Philadelphia sought volumes of picks. And more often than not, the team hit on their prospects.
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T.J. McConnell and Robert Covington were unclaimed by an NBA Draft. And yet, they are 40% of the most effective 76ers starting lineup. The team routinely picks injured players in the NBA Draft, not to lose games, but because those players are undervalued. The team also took a chance on international player Dario Saric with the same theory.
In the end, it’s the unorthodox players who are helping the 76ers find success now.