The Sixer Sense
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The Process is over, but Bryan Colangelo’s makeover has begun

By Tom Ignudo

Mar 11, 2017; Los Angeles, CA, USA; Los Angeles Clippers forward Blake Griffin (center) battles Philadelphia 76ers forward Robert Covington (left) and forward Richaun Holmes (22) for positioning on a free throw during the fourth quarter at Staples Center. The Clippers won 112-110. Mandatory Credit: Kelvin Kuo-USA TODAY Sports
Mar 11, 2017; Los Angeles, CA, USA; Los Angeles Clippers forward Blake Griffin (center) battles Philadelphia 76ers forward Robert Covington (left) and forward Richaun Holmes (22) for positioning on a free throw during the fourth quarter at Staples Center. The Clippers won 112-110. Mandatory Credit: Kelvin Kuo-USA TODAY Sports /
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The Process may be over, but now it’s time for Bryan Colangelo to make his mark on the Philadelphia 76ers.

The “Process” ended Tuesday night in typical “Process” fashion at the NBA Draft Lottery, as the Philadelphia 76ers swapped picks with the Sacramento Kings to land the third overall pick in the 2017 NBA Draft.

If not for former general manager Sam Hinkie, who fleeced the Kings back in 2015, the Sixers would be sitting with the fifth overall pick.

Again, Hinkie has positioned his replacement, Bryan Colangelo, at a comfortable spot in the draft.

And while the “Process” has ended, another chapter in the Sixers’ quest to the top has started — the start of Colangelo rebuilding his relationship with the fan base, his image and making the Sixers a top NBA franchise.

Let’s put the beef with Colangelo aside. I understand why you don’t trust the guy. We could go on and on talking about it, but this isn’t a long-form story. From the lies about Joel Embiid‘s injury to the uncertainty of Ben Simmons‘ health, its been a long year for Sixers fans.

But when you take out all of the outside noise and focus solely on the basketball side of things, Colangelo has made smart moves that make sense for where the Sixers are as a franchise.

Simmons with the No. 1 overall in the 2016 NBA Draft was a no-brainer, so lets skip past that and dig deeper into the draft.

At the 24th overall pick, Colangelo selected Timothe Luwawu-Cabarrot. The Frenchman will have to improve his shot in order to become a three and D player, but he showed some flashes last year for the Sixers.

Luwawu-Cabarrot averaged 16.7 points, 2.3 assists, 4.6 rebounds and 1.4 steals per game in the Sixers’ final nine games last season. That production might have been the result of Luwawu-Cabarrot starting each of those games, but he’s earned himself a role on the team heading into next season.

Colangelo’s third first round pick at No. 26 overall was Turkey product, Furkan Korkmaz — a draft and stash special. Korkmaz reportedly wants to be in a Sixers uniform next season, but has a complicated buyout that might prevent his debut from happening, according to Keith Pompey of the Philadelphia Inquirer.

Related Story: Furkan Korkmaz Fits the Philadelphia 76ers' Needs

Enter the 2016 free agency period. Many were skeptical Colangelo would jump the gun, spend a bunch of cash on free agents and prematurely speed up the “Process.”

But Colangelo stuck to his guns. He dealt his cards right by making smart veteran signings. On paper, Jerryd Bayless should fit playing next to Simmons and he came at a cheap price. It’s just too bad we didn’t see either play beside each other last season.

Sergio Rodiriguez was a cheap rental point guard for a year and now he’s gone. Gerald Henderson topped off the free agent class, and also brought a much needed veteran presence to a young locker room.

Colangelo added Ersan Ilyasova early in the season as another veteran in the locker room. This helped Embiid and Dario Saric grow as a players. Once Colangelo realized he wasn’t going to extend Ilyasova to a new deal in the summer, he dealt him. Then Saric re-entered the starting lineup and catapulted himself into the Rookie of the Year discussion.

The only questionable move made by Colangelo is the Nerlens Noel deal to the Dallas Mavericks at the trade deadline. I still feel like it was a panic move because he was unable to move Jahlil Okafor, and he knew he couldn’t come back from the deadline with all three bigs on the roster.

The Sixers will still be shopping Okafor this summer, as it will be one of many challenges Colangelo will have to dissect.

The first challenge will be on draft night, June 22. Washington guard Markelle Fultz and UCLA guard Lonzo Ball should go off the board in that order. And then with the No. 3 overall pick, Colangelo will be on the clock.

Will Colangelo pull the trigger on Kansas forward Josh Jackson? The polished Duke forward Jayson Tatum? Or could he decide to select one of the Kentucky guards in Malik Monk and De’Aaron Fox? We’ll have to wait and find out.

Next: TSS 2017 NBA Draft Lottery Big Board

We’ll also have to wait and find out if Colangelo can dig himself out of the hole he took a shovel to last season. Right now he’s stuck in the mud.

And the only way out for Colangelo is getting this draft and free agency right, and turning the Sixers into a winning franchise again.