The city of Philadelphia has laid claim to one of the most internationally rostered teams in the NBA with the Philadelphia 76ers. But this is more than a gathering of players. The Philadelphia 76ers are fulfilling dreams from around the world
The Philadelphia 76ers are the United Nations of the NBA. The team has a Canadian, an Australian, a Croatian, a Frenchman, a Turk, a Cameroon, and a host of Americans. Differing cultures, different languages, but one common goal. Each players hopes to contribute to an NBA championship team. Each player is willing to share a part of his unique culture and skillset in exchange for a chance at greatness. And so far, it’s working.
How do you pull together a team of such varied backgrounds? Well despite the appearance of ease and simplicity, the matter is entirely complex.
It’s a small world after all…
Their backgrounds are varied. Their families dot the globe – top to bottom, this way and that way. There is little to tie each player together on paper. Or is there? On one hand, there is that best-in-the-league training facility in Camden, New Jersey. So in practical terms, it’s the best basketball training facility anywhere. On the symbolic front, it’s built to support a championship team. So the very infrastructure of the Philadelphia 76ers is about evolving into a winner. But that is more than just a painless stroll in the park. It’s about dedication, compromise. Every player on the team wants to be “that guy” who scores the winning basket in game seven. But each player must accept their integral role in getting this team to that moment.
The journey is just beginning. The journey for the city of Philadelphia to reclaim her rightful place among the royalty of the NBA
Blue collar team for blue collar city
On the other hand, this team is about as blue collar as they come. Workhorses like Dario Saric, T.J. McConnell, Robert Covington, and Richaun Holmes keep this team grounded. Standouts like Ben Simmons, J.J. Redick, and Joel Embiid keep this team winning. Still, the team is built around the love of the game, the willingness to play to the final buzzer, and the bar set at earning playing minutes. There is little favoritism on this team, as we have witnessed.
Daily Knicks
But the team is changing it’s dynamics now. Playing time had been purely a matter of effort. Now, the team needs more than just effort – rather effort, effectiveness, and energy.
Sixers bar raised this year
That is why top-selection rookie Markelle Fultz is not getting playing time. He is putting in lots of effort, but his shot mechanics are discombobulated. The team is focusing on rejuvinating the young man’s shot before he takes the floor.
So too the team is looking at game mechanics. Dario Saric is getting the nod over Jerryd Bayless as the fifth starter now. But that’s not necessarily a “promotion” as it is “fit”. Bayless is that hybrid-guard insurance to defend a guard if Ben Simmons cannot do so. So far in this early seaon, Simmon has proven he is all point guard, plus more. And so, the 76ers have that option to call upon Saric to help in the front court. It’s been a process of acclimating Saric to the role needed with Simmons and Embiid on the floor. But he is finding his groove now. And the Sixers are winning very important games now as a result.
Dreams from the far corners of the globe
No dream of playing basketball is as unlikely as that of Cameroon Joel Embiid. He grew up in a nation which had little basketball options to fuel interest. And his initial interest was soccer and volleyball. Basketball only began to interest Embiid in his teens.
Initially, Joel Embiid’s Dad didn’t want him to play basketball because he thought it might be too physical for him.
— Sixers Legion (@SixersLegion) November 29, 2017
Joel - “Kinda disappointed that my dad thought I was soft.”
😂😂😂
Soft and inexperienced. Basketball was not a popular sport in Cameroon in Joel Embiid’s childhood. And if not for the intervention of fellow countryman and NBA player Luc Mbah A Moute, he would be winning hearts in volleyball.
Croatia sends a hero to Philadelphia
To the north, another nation had Philadelphia in it’s sights. The home of Pedrag and Vaselinki Saric was an incubation chamber of love and respect for the game of basketball. That legacy fostered the workhorse like effort in their son Dario. Much like Embiid, Dario Saric was selected in the 2014 NBA Draft. And much like Embiid, Saric did not arrive to Philadelphia until 2016.
But where Embiid fought against the trend, Dario Saric was raised in a basketball family. As Philadelphia 76ers fans learned the economic reasons why Dario Saric would never come to Philadelphia in two seasons, the honor and reputation of the Saric name dictated he would. And while Dario does not command headlines, his contribution forged the 28 wins last season when neither Simmons nor Embiid could play. So too, he is finding his role this year.
The glue who binds all together
We’ve nominated Philadelphia 76ers head coach Brett Brown for NBA Coach of the Year based on what he has done with so many young players. But we didn’t mention anything about the diversity of the team. That’s no small matter. Let’s refocus on the Philadelphia 76ers trajectory. In the 2015-2016 season, the Philadelphia 76ers owned the worst record in the NBA. Ten wins is not a success which inspires players to work hard. And yet, Coach Brown found the key to each player.
Air Alamo
When the 2016-2017 arrived, Brown had to motivate his internationally rostered team. Despite the loss of Australian Ben Simmons, and losing Cameroon Joel Embiid after 31 games, he found a way to tap into the team’s diversity and strength. Somehow he found the way to hitch the team to Croatian Dario Saric, and fast-tracked Frenchman Timothe Luwawu-Cabarrot.
Foreign cavalry on the way for 2018
But this season, he has an international roster. And next year, it will diversify even further. The team has Latvian center Anzecs Pasecniks, Australian power forward Jonah Bolden, and French small forward Mathias Lessort will only reinforce the team’s international roster next year.
The way it now stands, Pasecniks will sign in as Jahlil Okafor’s vacated spot. Bolden will sign one at Amir Johnson’s vacated spot. And Lessort could fill the spot (albeit not a similar role) as the Nik Stauskas vacated spot. Do you see a pattern? Latvian, Australian, and French prospects on a team with East European, Australian, and French players? Bryan Colangelo has a reputation for favoring international players. That reputation will only grown with his moves as President of the Philadelphia 76ers.
The significance of so many uniting in Philly
There is something far more significant than the game of basketball in Philadelphia. There is a weaving of culture and optimism, dreams and efforts in the City of Brotherly Love. This in not a Pennsylvanian tapestry, nor an American tapestry. The weave of the Philadelphia 76ers infuses the dreams and hopes of the planet.
This roster is not a fragile weave, but rather gossamer fabric. There is so much more to the Philadelphia 76ers than a simple cheering crowd from the stands. The 76ers boast fans on every populated continent. And the term “Trust the Process” is our calling card.
Grab your passport
From Melbourne, Australia, to Manila, Phillipines; from Geyong, Singapore to Zagreb, Croatia; from Paris, France to Tokyo, Japan. The world tunes in to follow the Philadelphia 76ers. Not just one week, nor one month, but steadily growing for years.
Next: Dario Saric is starting to find his groove
When the Philadelphia 76ers take the court, they do so as the common dream of nations and peoples from every corner of the planet. So far, the team is already 13 wins of 22 games. So far, this team is already dominating potential playoff opponents. And the team is heading into December 2017, where the team begins to face a more rounded sampling of the NBA, and not a gauntlet against the best of the NBA right out of the gates. As the world enters the holiday season, use the mood to enlighten your hopes, your dreams, your days. The world believes in the Philadelphia 76ers. The fans of the Philadelphia 76ers can believe in the world.