It began so properly.
In an period the place the easiest gamers don’t attain free company, rendering well-planned cap house impotent, Philadelphia 76ers normal supervisor extraordinaire Daryl Morey pulled a rabbit out of his hat this previous offseason, signing the only star-level free agent available on the market: Paul George.
Morey does it once more! Philadelphia won the offseason! Begin planning the Broad Avenue parade! The Eagles have been grateful for that preplanning, by the best way.
There’s an previous phrase about best-laid plans…
On the time of writing, the Sixers sit in twelfth place within the NBA’s Japanese Convention with a 20-37 file. Their Large Three of George, Joel Embiid and Tyrese Maxey have shared the courtroom for simply 15 of these video games for a total of 294 minutes. They’ve a internet score of -0.5 in these minutes, and their offensive and defensive rankings are each beneath the league common.
Embiid has, as is unfortunately customary, missed 38 video games and appeared decidedly underdone when he has performed. George has missed 19 video games and appears like a shadow of the participant he was simply final season. Even Maxey has missed a handful of video games. Now, Embiid is, based on ESPN’s Shams Charania, strongly considering knee surgery that will end his campaign as his present routine is failing to have the specified affect.
In a season the place excellent news has been sparse, it’s excessive time the Sixers embraced a late-season tank.
Philadelphia owes its first-round decide to Oklahoma Metropolis, with top-six safety. If the draft lottery have been held right this moment, Philadelphia would maintain the sixth decide, assuming it doesn’t rise or fall. Whereas it could be essentially the most Sixers factor — and albeit hilarious — for Philadelphia to close down its stars and nonetheless by some means fall to seventh within the draft, it must embrace no matter likelihood it has of “incomes” a excessive draft decide and getting one thing from this depressing season.
A top-five decide, with their present core, ought to vault the Sixers again into the higher echelons of the East … or will it?
Going again to his collegiate days at Kansas, Embiid’s well being issues have been properly documented. The large Cameroonian has appeared in 452 of a doable 868 regular-season video games all through his profession, an look price of simply 52 p.c. Turning 31 in just a few weeks and with a medieval scroll of accidents in his background, does anyone consider that Embiid can get again to something approaching his finest?
George turns 35 in Could and has a litany of accidents — each niggling and catastrophic — his leg break was really terrible. Final yr was the one season wherein he has appeared in a minimum of 60 video games since 2019. Whereas 35 is youthful in NBA years than it was 20 years in the past, let’s not neglect that LeBron James and Kevin Durant might not be one hundred pc human; it’s not truthful to evaluate anyone else by their requirements. George, whose play has fallen off a cliff this season, seems to have aged out of his prime.
Maxey is a younger gun along with his finest years forward of him. However, at a wispy 6-foot-2 and defensively poor, is he the participant the Sixers need to construct round? Nearly as good as he’s, he’s no Stephen Curry or (speaks in hushed tones) Allen Iverson. If Maxey is solely a extra likable Trae Younger, the place does that depart the Sixers?
That begs the query: ought to the Sixers contemplate a full teardown/rebuild? And, extra pertinently, do they should reanimate the corpse of Sam Hinkie?
The Sixers are in an inexpensive place in relation to future picks, particularly in the event that they maintain their first this yr. If the Sixers can accomplish that, it makes some sense for them to maneuver on from their high-priced stars. Get what you possibly can for George and Embiid, however begin by shifting Maxey for an enormous haul. If Mikal Bridges is price 5 firsts, what would a determined group pay for Maxey?
Morey — Hinkie’s mentor, lest we neglect — is among the most inventive decision-makers we’ve ever seen within the NBA and has typically been an excellent assessor of expertise. He drafted Maxey at decide 21 and obtained Isaiah Joe within the second spherical in 2020. Jared McCain was the odds-on Rookie of the 12 months favourite — at decide 16 — earlier than damage struck. Dillon Brooks, Isaiah Hartenstein, Clint Capela and Montrezl Harrell have been all deep-cut gems mined by Morey. With a treasure trove of picks at his disposal, most would again Morey to get extra choices proper than mistaken.
As a dealer, Morey is famous. His capability to get imaginative in drawing worth from virtually each commerce he makes is outstanding. And let’s not neglect his magnum opus: stealing future MVP James Harden from the Thunder.
This iteration of the Sixers goes nowhere. Whereas, in not an ideal form of manner, they’re fascinating to look at, it’s excessive time the group obtained out of Morey’s manner and let him prepare dinner. With the precise substances, he’ll whip you up a masterpiece.
