Add Value, Not Drama
But the Sam Hinkie Manifesto is clear. The goal of every action of the front office is to improve the team value. There is no magical perspective in the NBA. Scouting departments are a wash. If a team lucks into a great player one year, they are no more likely to nail a great player in the next draft.
Swarm and Sting
Hinkie’s front office was so underrated. The team managed to frequently draft a player desperately coveted by another team. Then, the 76ers would trade the player to the team for a premium. In that transaction, the team “added value”.
Get That Pick!
He didn’t have much to work with when he arrived to the Philadelphia 76ers. But he did make it a point to restore traded picks back to the team. That focus energized the scouting department. The Orlando Magic held the Philadelphia 76ers pick rights, so the scouts simply outguessed Orlando in the 2014 NBA Draft. Aiming at that pick restoration enabled the team to pry Dario Saric and the first round pick from the Magic for guard Elfrid Payton.
But it appeared magical to the Sixers fans.