It has been a long season for Sixers fans. Make that a long 3 years. Ever since the team has decided to start this rebuilding process in 2013 they have been absolutely atrocious. Winning a total of 41 games through roughly 2 and a half seasons. After starting 1-30 to start this season with also owning new records for most consecutive loses (28), which broke their previous record of 26 set in the 2013-2014 season and tying the record for worst start to the season (0-18).
Me personally, I agreed with starting all over and rebuilding through the draft. If this franchise ever had hopes of once again being a championship team it was the right thing to do. Fans are not upset with the fact that the team is losing. Fans are upset with the fact that it didn't look like there where any efforts to win or improve the team. Also adding that this team is downright unwatchable. It is a team made up of first and second round picks and D League players. You look at a team like Minnesota who is rebuilding and in 2 years have the number 1 pick in Andrew Wiggins (via trade) and number 1 pick Karl Anthony Towns. While the team still isn't a playoff contender just yet, its a group of guys and a team that is fun to watch and looks promising in the future.A big reason for that is due to the talented young guys they drafted and having a good mix of veteran leadership on that team to help mentor and guide those future stars.
Now granted the rebuild has taken a lot of hits which is why i think a lot of fans are frustrated. Fans are going through all these losing seasons and can't seem to get the number 1 pick or the player drafted is overseas or has injury issues, because I believe if Joel Embiid can get healthy and stay healthy he has the type of talent that can completely turn a franchise around. I think Sam Hinkie is brilliant in his plan. The players he has drafted when on the court have been productive, while also pulling off one of the best trades i think isn't talked about enough when he traded Michael Carter Williams for possibly a future lottery pick if the ping poll balls fall right. Trading former Rookie of the Year was a shock to everyone but looking at how much MCW has digressed since his rookie year, getting a possible lottery pick for him is a heist. But Sam Hinkie has his faults, he is one of, if not the main reason the team hasn't shown any improvement year by year. With drafting Jahlil Okafor and having a rookie be ready day one, you expected a better start from this team than what they've given you. That's where Sam Hinkie went wrong. After drafting these young guys instead of putting some veterans players around them, he decided to sign more undrafted rookies and D league players because his goal is lose as many games as possible.
That is why the league stepped in. Reports say Adam Silver had a big hand in getting the Sixers to hire Jerry Colangelo as an adviser. The Chairman of USA Basketball had immediate impact on the team when they decided to trade for Ish Smith and bring in Elton Brand to be a veteran voice for this team. With everything that happened earlier in the season with Jahlil Okafor, it was time to add a veteran presence in that locker room to help guide these young players that haven't been in this position before. I think it's going to serve well for the young players like Noel and Okafor who the franchise is really counting on to have someone like Elton Brand who has been in the league a long time and know what it takes to stay in this league. A lot of talk about how the Sixers young players need that veteran player in the locker room but also i think the hiring of Colangelo gave Sam Hinkie and veteran presence in the front office. Someone who knows what they are doing and have done it at a high level for a long time.
The Sixers since the trade for Ish Smith have won 3 out of 7 games after winning just 1 of their first 31 games. With Ish Smith their offensive rating is up from 95.2 to 99.7 and their defensive rating is up from 108.6 to 104.1 (which ranks 12th in the league since the trade). These numbers are not eye popping but they are improvements. All fans want to see is effort and improvement to make this team better, and if this is what Colangelo can due in a few weeks, I'm excited to see what him and Hinkie can do in the off season to make this team better.
With possibly 4 first round picks in the upcoming draft along with 2014 12th-overall pick Dario Saric finally joining the team,who scouts rave about and the hopeful debut of 2014 3rd-overall pick Joel Embiid, the sixers are to have a roster with a lot of talent, and now with a voice in the front office who will help manage that talent, the dark days for this franchise look to be coming to an end sooner rather than later. So Sixers fans should be thanking Adam Silver for stepping in and persuading the Organization to bring in someone with the basketball knowledge like Jerry Colangelo. Sixers fans shouldn't be expecting a championship soon but they can expect a brighter future.
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