The Philadelphia 76er, for the second year in a row, enter a potentially make-or-break offseason. Following a disastrous campaign that saw them register the fifth-worst record in the entire association, the franchise has once again stumbled upon a huge roadblock to their bid to bring a championship to the city for the first time in more than four decades.
Acing the offseason, however, will definitely be much harder this time around. While having the third overall pick in the draft — and the expansive optionality that comes with it — helps a lot, this roster has proven to be hounded by issues left and right. Thus, the front office will have their work cut out for them.
But going back to our point, the 76ers will be operating under harsher financial conditions this year, meaning that they will not be able to afford anything remotely close to the largesse they indulged in during last summer. And naturally, they only have themselves to blame for being in that position.
The 76ers are cash-strapped this offseason due to their own miscalculations
The 76ers have a long list of priorities this summer, and topping that list is keeping their huge contributors from this season. Quentin Grimes and Guerschon Yabusele made the squad watchable this year, and losing either of them could have significant adverse effects on the team’s outlook in 2025-26.
Unfortunately, given that they will be ushering in a lofty lottery pick, the 76ers could very well become a second-apron team which, of course, comes with a slew of consequences. For example, they will not be able to enjoy having the taxpayer’s mid-level exception, outgoing salaries cannot be aggregated in trades, and cash cannot be used any more to sweeten the pot in trades, among others.
This looming threat is brought forth by the front office’s shortsighted decisions stemming from last year when they went all-in on veteran commodities and paid them above market rate, except for Kelly Oubre Jr.
Now, with the likes of Andre Drummond and Eric Gordon opting into their contracts to return to the team, the front office will have a very difficult time trying to bring back Grimes and/or Yabusele, and they could very well be constrained to resorting to veteran’s minimum signings to round out the roster and address their gaping issues.
Unless the Philadelphia 76ers manage to pull off a bevy of cap-clearing trades, the front office will most likely be forced to part with vital rotation cogs while settling for lesser pieces in the market, which would be far from ideal in their comeback bid next season.
And who else to blame but themselves, right?