As of the moment, no other team in the NBA probably harbors an inkling of envy toward the Philadelphia 76ers, currently in possession of the absolute worst record among all 30 teams thanks to a ridiculous 2-12 win-loss card. Having lost five straight outings, there’s not really much glimmer of optimism for the franchise, especially in light of recent events.
The optimistic view is that there are still way too many games to count the squad out, and the abundance of talent on the team will eventually abate their terrible record, but things rarely go well enough in the NBA successively for the 76ers to bank on mere kismet to get them out of their early hole.
At this point, moves will have to be made, and the front office surely cannot be satisfied with what they currently have on deck. Change should be coming, not only because it will have to come anyway, but because it is imperative at this point.
76ers predicted to do the most obvious thing before the trade deadline
With the trade market slated to be in full force shortly when trade restrictions start to get lifted, the 76ers are once again anticipated to be an active force in the transaction tables, bolstered further by the team’s current state.
Bleacher Report’s Dan Favale certainly expects Philadelphia to be a key player, but only insofar as making upgrades on the margins. Naturally, the 76ers are precluded from really making a blockbuster swap, but there is a lot of reason for them to settle for smaller, yet impactful moves before the trade deadline.
Philly is predicted to move the needle for a rangy shot creator or wing, a glowing point of concern for the team this season (and really, in years past). Outside of Paul George, the 76ers have little to no size at the wing positions, and the coaching staff has basically been handcuffed into trotting out the smallest of lineups on a nightly basis.
It’s pretty obvious that the 76ers are hindered by their lack of size. That they decided to surround their stars with low-ceiling players defensively has only served to exacerbate their fundamental issues, and it is currently placing them on a quicksand.
The market is quite littered with good-sized wings who are able defenders and non-negligible on offense, although to get some of them, the 76ers will have to part with not only salary matchers, but also pot sweeteners to beat their competition for expected sweepstakes.
Still, the front office cannot afford to get tricky, lest the Philadelphia 76ers find themselves atop the inverse standings.