The Sixer Sense
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Philadelphia 76ers need succession plan

By Bret Stuter

PHILADELPHIA,PA - JANUARY 4: Coach Mike D'antoni of the Philadelphia 76ers looks on along with Brett Brown against the Minnesota Timberwolves at Wells Fargo Center on January 4, 2015 in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania NOTE TO USER: User expressly acknowledges and agrees that, by downloading and/or using this Photograph, user is consenting to the terms and conditions of the Getty Images License Agreement. Mandatory Copyright Notice: Copyright 2016 NBAE (Photo by Jesse D. Garrabrant/NBAE via Getty Images)
PHILADELPHIA,PA - JANUARY 4: Coach Mike D'antoni of the Philadelphia 76ers looks on along with Brett Brown against the Minnesota Timberwolves at Wells Fargo Center on January 4, 2015 in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania NOTE TO USER: User expressly acknowledges and agrees that, by downloading and/or using this Photograph, user is consenting to the terms and conditions of the Getty Images License Agreement. Mandatory Copyright Notice: Copyright 2016 NBAE (Photo by Jesse D. Garrabrant/NBAE via Getty Images) /
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Philadelphia 76ers
PHILADELPHIA, PA – FEBRUARY 27: Kevin Durant #35 and Draymond Green #23 of the Golden State Warriors celebrate in front of Richaun Holmes #22 of the Philadelphia 76ers in the first quarter at the Wells Fargo Center on February 27, 2017 in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. NOTE TO USER: User expressly acknowledges and agrees that, by downloading and or using this photograph, User is consenting to the terms and conditions of the Getty Images License Agreement. (Photo by Mitchell Leff/Getty Images) /

Embrace attrition of key personnel as a need to move closer to the championship goal.

The last, and perhaps most important, principal is the willingness to embrace the departure of key personnel.  In the NBA, that is an annual event as teams reshuffle their roster decks in the hopes of dealing themselves a winning lineup.

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    • But the flip side is the impact to the former team. Does it paralyze them into making no moves? Does it motivate them to panic and react with unwise moves? Or can the team maintain their composure, place their own succession plan into place, and target economical free agents while reinforcing the position with young talent?

    Hinkie, Houston, Harden

    You have to look no further than the Oklahoma City Thunder to see how several versions of the team’s history resulted in the eventual outcome.  The Thunder once boasted the services of Kevin Durant, James Harden, and Russell Westbrook.

    When the team traded Harden, they feared losing him to free agency and getting nothing in return. So they unwillingingly traded him to the Houston Rockets. The team hoped to retain Kevin Durant, but was unable to persuade him to remain. Now the team is pinning the hopes of the franchise to Russell Westbrook.  By the way, Sam Hinkie was part of the Houston braintrust which pulled off that Harden trade.

    The Thunder has taken three different approaches to attempting to retain elite talent on their roster. So far, that talent level has slowly declined. Unfortunately, the Philadelphia 76ers sit on what may be a similar pool of elite talent.