Absolute no one will be counting the Philadelphia 76ers among the biggest winners in the summer of 2025. After all, this offseason has been pretty stale for the franchise, and if we are being honest, that might actually be just a softer way of saying that the front office did not deliver during the league sabbatical.
True enough, the 76ers did not really do much this offseason that would make everyone else notice them. In fact, their most striking “moves” are the ones they failed to make or still have not done, namely, losing Guerschon Yabusele to a rival team in the Knicks during free agency after the front office lowballed him, and still failing to come to terms with Quentin Grimes on a new deal to bring him back for at least the upcoming season.
Likewise, there were a couple of decisions that absolutely perplexed fans and pundits alike. There is that brow-raising choice to bring back Kyle Lowry for another go-round despite the veteran contending for “worst rotation player in the NBA” last season, and attempting to mitigate a critical roster need by re-signing Eric Gordon, who has very little left in the tank, to a new contract.
Yet it seems like the 76ers avoided having the worst offseason slate in the entire association, all thanks to a team in far worse shape than them.
76ers evade “worst offseason in the league” tag thanks to the Pelicans
In a recent survey on ESPN where 20 coaches, scouts and executives were polled ahead of training camp, the 76ers got a brief mention when one individual named them as the team which had the worst offseason.
Their lone vote, however, pales in comparison to what the Pelicans garnered. Nine other people voted New Orleans in that dreaded category, with voters impugning the fact that they paid a heavy price to snag the right to draft Derik Queen. And of course, their decision to flip CJ McCollum’s expiring deal for the much-maligned Jordan Poole did not go unnoticed.
New Orleans topping that list is most definitely appropriate. Their team was already registering season-long disappointments on a yearly basis, and given the brutal nature of the West, it is hard to believe that they can get back to the playoffs and finally realize their potential.
Anyhow, the 76ers cannot possibly call this one a “win” in their books, The front office has a lot of work to do to bolster the team’s chances at returning to contention. Heck, to this day, they are not even through with their summer to-do list.