With the Philadelphia 76ers putting out a much better on-court product as of late, what were once unrealistic championship hopes are now slowly getting revived. Flaunting a cleaner bill of health this time, especially to its star, the team is now poised to surge through the standings after a brutal first two months to kick off their campaign.
Nick Nurse has finally gotten a taste of his preferred starting lineup which has injected a more viable winning formula for the squad. The 76ers now have one of the most well-rounded opening groups in the NBA, and that should not change as long as health permits. As Joel Embiid said following their rousing victory over the defending champs on Christmas, this team has a pretty high ceiling.
Having said that, the work continues not only for the players and the coaching staff, but also for the front office. Philly, despite an abundance of talent in its first five, has a very volatile bench squad that is far from the deepest in the league. Put simply, the 76ers have a weak bench, and that needs urgent addressing as the games start becoming more meaningful.
The 76ers have now lost another trade target as Dorian Finney-Smith heads to the Lakers
Since last season, the 76ers were repeatedly linkd to Nets forward Dorian Finney-Smith. A popular trade target for most win-now teams, the veteran forward has somehow remained with Brooklyn at this juncture even with his club kickstarting a fire sale during the offseason.
Finney-Smith would have been a perfect complementary piece for Philadelphia, but it seems like that woudl remain a dream for now. According to ESPN’s Shams Charania, the Los Angeles Lakers have now acquired the veteran from the Brooklyn Nets forward a package involving D’Angelo Russell.
The Lakers have similarly eyed Finney-Smith for a long time, and with Russell slowly falling out of JJ Redick’s favor in the rotation, it was only a matter of time until Los Angeles dangles him away. Now, he returns to Brooklyn where he made his lone All-Star appearance.
As a result fo this trade, the Philadelphia 76ers would again be looking at a missed opportunity. Dorian FInney-Smith could have massively helped them shore up their depth at forward while giving them another tenured option who has sufficient experience playing in the playoffs.
For now, the front office will have to either look at some head-turning moves or modest ones that can smoothen the edges in the rotation to help them continue their recent momentum on the wins column.