Welcome back to another entry in the “Worst Sixers Starters” article series. Last month, I wrote about the 6 Worst Starters of the Allen Iverson era. This time, we dive into the Joel Embiid era, and the notable difference is this era is still ongoing. Embiid joined the team during “The Process” though so he played with some questionable NBA players in his relatively short career with the Sixers.
Similar to my previous article, the criteria we outlined for a “starter” was having started 20 games during a season with the Sixers. First up, likely controversial, is Ben Simmons.
Ben Simmons (2020-21)
Simmons was a polarizing figure during his tenure with the Sixers and his departure was celebrated across the city of Philadelphia. In fairness though, we have to acknowledge the good as well as the bad. The good of Simmons is he was a Rookie of the Year, 3-time All-Star, 2-time All-Defense, 1-time All-NBA, and 1-time steal leader. That is an impressive resume for a 27-year-old in the league, so how exactly does he end up on this list?
Well, in contrast to many of the other Sixers’ players on this list, Simmons lands on it when you consider the whole person. Yes, at 6’10” and with God-given athletic gifts, Simmons had a head start in the basketball realm. But he never learned to be a good teammate and never improved his game from what it was when he was drafted into the NBA in 2017.
An NBA point guard who cannot shoot the ball is a huge liability.
It was not just he could not shoot three-pointers, his mid-range game was just as poor and defenders were legitimately guarding him by standing 10 feet away in the paint daring him to shoot the ball. This was the complete opposite of what is needed for someone playing alongside Joel Embiid as opposing teams could essentially double him in the paint.
In 2020-21, Simmons last year in Philly, he averaged career-lows in points, rebounds, and assists per game. He was his worst in his fourth year on the court and that again speaks to a lack of commitment to improving his game. Simmons’ personality and constant deflecting of responsibility made him a bad teammate and landed him on the list of worst starters with Embiid.
Jahlil Okafor (2016-17)
The former number three overall pick in the 2015 NBA Draft has had a disappointing professional career in the league. If we are being honest, Okafor was born into the wrong era for playing in the NBA. In the middle of the 2010s, the league was transitioning to big men who could play away from the basket and stretch the floor, something Okafor is not known for. He is a big body who could dominate in the post and was a key reason the Duke Blue Devils won an NCAA Championship during his one year in college.
OKafor’s first season in Philly was productive.
He averaged 17.5 points and 7 rebounds per game in his rookie season which landed him on the All-Rookie team. However, Okafor was playing for a Sixers team that went 10-72, one of the worst records in the history of the NBA. Embiid had been drafted the year before but was sitting out for his second consecutive year due to a foot injury. Okafor had no competition at the center position and had a green light to play his game with the team being so bad.
In the 2016-17 season when Embiid played his first games in the NBA, Okafor started to see his role and style of play becoming extinct. His production dropped to 11.8 points and 4.8 rebounds per game and this was the beginning of the end for Okafor. He was out of the league in 2021, just six years after being a top-3 draft pick. Stockpiling centers was the fault of the Sixers’ front office, but Okafor’s not being able to adapt his game lies with himself.
Gerald Henderson Jr. (2016-17)
Henderson was a lottery pick out of Duke in the 2009 draft. At a time when one-and-done college basketball players became popular, Henderson played three seasons at Duke before declaring for the NBA Draft. Following his junior year where he averaged 16.5 points per game and made First-team All-ACC, he was able to stay in state to start his NBA career with the Charlotte Bobcats.
I am sure it is clear by this point, but players landing on this list is not an indication or representation of their NBA careers as a whole. This is solely based on their talent and production when starting for the Philadelphia 76ers during Embiid’s NBA tenure. And with that in mind, Henderson joined the Sixers in 2016-17, which turned out to be his final NBA season.
Henderson was waived by the Sixers the same year that he was a starter.
With Embiid first seeing the court in 2016-2017, the Sixers were hoping to start the turnaround of “The Process” and march toward NBA success. This being the first year of that turnaround, the Sixers were still starting some questionable players and trying to find the right mix of players to surround Embiid with. Henderson was a quality starter with Charlotte averaging over 15 points per game in two seasons. His age caught up to him when he came to Philly and that is why he is a part of this unfortunate list.
Wilson Chandler (2018-19)
Did you know Wilson Chandler was Mr. Basketball in Michigan in 2005? I bet the answer is No on that one. Chandler had a relatively successful 13-year NBA career and is probably most well-known for being involved in the blockbuster trade where Carmelo Anthony was sent from the Denver Nuggets to the New York Knicks.
Chandler’s time in Denver was probably his most effective in the NBA. He started most of the games he was available to play for the Nuggets and consistently averaged 10+ points and 5+ rebounds per game. He was a big-body small forward who could defend multiple positions and he knew his role on the team.
Chandler’s time with the Sixers was short-lived.
In the summer of 2018, the Sixers traded for Chandler, hoping he could be a good frontcourt player alongside Embiid. Yet, after just 36 games in Philadelphia, the Sixers moved on from Chandler at the trade deadline. He started 32 of these games and only averaged 6.7 points and 4.7 rebounds, respectively, per game. After leaving Philadelphia, Chandler only played 50 more games in the NBA.
His final days were marred by injury and a suspension for PEDs. Like Henderson, Chandler joined the Sixers towards the end of his career. Maybe the Sixers were trying to find veteran players to create a culture for a young Embiid. Whatever the reason, at this point in Chandler’s career, he was not an NBA starter.
Sergio Rodriguez (2016-17)
I bet some of you forgot who Sergio Rodriguez was until this article. The former Euroleague Champion was not able to translate his success across the Atlantic Ocean. Rodriguez played five full seasons in the NBA with the Portland Trailblazers, Sacramento Kings, New York Knicks, and Philadelphia 76ers. The interesting factor here is the timing of his NBA career.
Rodriguez was drafted by the Trailblazers in 2006 and after a buyout from his European team, came over to the US to play. He went back to Europe though following the 2010 season and played for Real Madrid for 6 seasons. It was at this point, at the age of 30 and six years removed from the NBA, that the Philadelphia 76ers signed Rodriguez to come back and play in the league.
Why did the Sixers bring sign Rodriguez in 2016?
This question has always baffled me, as it did not seem like Rodriguez was an NBA player at this point in his career. Although in fairness, during the dog days of “The Process”, a number of players saw playing time with the Sixers that were not NBA caliber players. In Rodriguez’s case, it was not as if a 30-year-old playing in a less competitive league was going to help stabilize the point guard position for the Sixers.
Sergio started 30 games for the Sixers in 2016-17 tallying 7.8 points, 2.3 rebounds, and 5.1 assists. Those are decent numbers for a bench or role player on a middling team, which the Sixers were at that time. It just seemed odd for a team with a promising future to bring Rodriguez over for one year.
Timothe Luwawu-Cabarrot (2016-17)
Timothe Luwawu-Cabarrot reframed the acronym TLC in Philadelphia. The young Frenchman was a relatively unknown asset when the Sixers used their 24th draft pick in the 2016 NBA Draft on TLC. He was coming off a productive year with the Mega Leks of the Serbian league in which he was a part of the Championship team overseas.
The Sixers took a flier on drafting TLC taking him in the first round. The league was seeing an influx of European talent as it appeared that the rest of the world was beginning to catch up to the United States in terms of basketball talent. Finding the needle in the haystack for overseas players could make or break General Managers and in this case, it was the latter.
TLC is likely more suited for the G-League than the NBA.
I mentioned on the first slide that the criteria for “starter” was 20 games started, but I made an exception for TLC as he started 19 games for the Sixers in 2016-2017. As has been seen earlier and will be seen later in this list, this is the season when most of the worst starters come from during Embiid’s Sixers tenure. It is hard to blame the franchise, as this was an experimental year to find the types of players that could complement Embiid in the years to come in pursuit of an NBA Championship.
TLC never averaged above 8 points or 3 rebounds per game during his six-year NBA career and is now back playing in Europe where he probably belongs. This tumultuous time towards the turnaround in “The Process” was a breeding ground for players to get an opportunity to earn future NBA rosters. TLC was unable to cash in on this.
TJ McConnell (2016-17)
TJ McConnell, aka Mr. Triple Double, was the heart and soul of this team for a number of years. McConnell was an undrafted player who started his college career at Duquesne, before making his way to the University of Arizona where he would be a part of an Elite 8 run for the Wildcats in the NCAA Tournament during his senior year.
Throughout each stage of his basketball career, McConnell had to fight to prove his worth. This was no different in the summer of 2015 when he earned a roster spot for the Sixers following his Summer League play after going undrafted. From undrafted to his current $33-million contract with the Indiana Pacers, McConnell is a success story rarely seen in the NBA. His hard work ethic and grit made him one of Philadelphia’s favorite sons.
McConnell never cheated the game and left it all on the floor.
It feels wrong to include TJ on this list, but we have to be realistic. The 6’1″ guard started 51 games for the Sixers during 2016-17, which is more games started than the rest of his seven NBA seasons combined. There is the proof clearly presented. TJ McConnell, regardless of your feelings about him, is not an NBA starter.
He averaged 6.9 points, 3.1 rebounds, and 6.6 assists per game for the Sixers during that season which is unacceptable for a starting point guard. It does not take away from what he meant to this city or how he made the fans feel with his energetic and passionate play. It is just a fact he was one of the worst starters during the Embiid era.
Nik Stauskas (2016-17)
And finally, closing out the worst starters list of the Embiid era is Nik Stauskas, the sharpshooter out of the University of Michigan. Does anyone remember watching that viral video of Stauskas in his backyard where he made 70 of 76 three-pointers in 5 minutes?! Nik made 46 of those in a row too! The hype around him shot through the roof and man did that shooting stroke look so smooth.
Unfortunately, for both Nik and the Sixers, that backyard talent never fully translated into the NBA. During his sophomore season at Michigan, Stauskas burst onto the scene. He finished the season averaging 17.5 points per game on 47% shooting from the field and 44% from three-point range. Those impressive numbers led to him being drafted by the Sacramento Kings with the 8th overall pick in the 2014 NBA Draft.
Stauskas’ skillset should have been a perfect fit alongside Embiid.
Nik joined the Sixers after just one year in the NBA with the Kings, and the Sixers were hopeful his shooting prowess from Michigan would resurface. He should have been able to stretch the floor to allow Embiid more room to operate in the paint, yet he never found the success seen during his time at Michigan.
In Philly, Stauskas started 35 games in 2015-16 and 27 games in 2016-17. He shot 32.6% and 36.8% from three-point range, respectively in those two seasons, far from the 44% in college. His biggest strength, and likely his survival line in the NBA regressed to the mean and ultimately that was the downfall for Stauskas. Following the 2016-17 seasons, Stauskas never again started a game in the league. Is any more proof needed that he was not an NBA-caliber starter?
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