Welcome back! In Part 1 of this series, we explored the value of the Philadelphia 76ers’ three most important players: Nerlens Noel, Jahlil Okafor, and Joel Embiid. Let’s dive deeper into the rest of the roster and the organization as a whole. (Note: This was initially planned as a 2-part series, but as it was written, it became clear that a third part will be necessary.)
[Cue the ESPN 30 for 30 voice] What if I told you an NBA team’s general manager tried putting together a team that would lose? What if I told you that team had nearly $30 million in dead money, and was totally fine with that? And what if I told you that team refused to lower ticket prices to reflect the product on the floor?
What makes Philadelphia’s youth movement so objectionable is how they’ve completely dismissed the idea of having veteran leadership to guide young talent. The Sixers’ group of young players are left to figure it out on their own.
On Philly’s current roster, the only player who’s been in the league more than three years is Carl Landry. Landry has an injured wrist, and won’t be able to play until at least mid-January. Plus, Landry landed in Philadelphia from Sacramento in the off-season as part of a trade that brought the Sixers a future first-round pick and Nik Stauskas. Landry was part of the deal for the most part because the Kings wanted to shed salary, and the 76ers could absorb it, not because the Sixers necessarily wanted him. It wouldn’t be totally out the question for the Sixers to buy Landry out of his contract once healthy. Thus, Landry might not ever play in a Sixers uniform. Moreover, Landry is on the books for $6,750,000, which makes him their third-highest paid player. The two above him? JaVale McGee ($12 million) and Gerald Wallace ($10,105,855). Don’t strain your eye muscles looking for McGee or Wallace on the Sixers roster … because they’re not there!
McGee and Wallace had their contracts bought out. That’s right: Combined, the Sixers three highest-paid players are giving them as much on-court production as I am, and depending on Landry’s status going forward, they might not get anything from any of them this entire season.
For a best-case scenario, look at the Minnesota Timberwolves: Aside from getting major value for Kevin Love in the much-publicized trade that got them Andrew Wiggins, they have number one pick Karl-Anthony Towns, and brought back franchise legend Kevin Garnett to guide their stable young players. Garnett knows the clock is ticking on his career, but teaching Towns and the rest of the team has now become Garnett’s role. Towns loves having Garnett there, and Garnett has found a way to pay it forward, giving back to the game that has given him so much. There’s value in having guys like Garnett in a locker room full of players still developing, if for no other reason than to set an example of how to be a professional. Philadelphia has seemingly rejected this notion.
The twist in all of this is that Philadelphia’s general manager, Sam Hinkie, has the team’s ownership so convinced this method will work that he probably has the best job security of any NBA GM. As of this writing, since Hinkie took over, the 76ers are 37-145. His vision has made it so that ownership must see it through (at least to some extent), in order to allow Hinkie to reap the benefits, should this all actually work.
Philadelphia has made it oh-so obvious they have no plans to win a meaningful amount of games for the foreseeable future, so it would seem reasonable to expect them to give their fans a break on ticket prices, right? I mean, they’re actively trying to be the league’s worst team. Well, the fans haven’t exactly been given that break. Last season, the average ticket price for a 76ers game ranked ninth from the bottom. Buying a ticket to a Sixers game at market value last season, on average, would have cost you more money than a ticket to an Atlanta Hawks game – a Hawks team that went on to go 60-22. (It’s too early this season to have any sort of meaningful data in the area.) As skeptical as I am about Philly’s plan as a whole, they could be a few years away from building a dynasty, and I could end up with egg on my face. But keeping ticket prices closer to league average than to the bottom while actively trying to lose is indefensible, and should have Sixer and NBA fans alike, furious. It’s insulting to the fan base, or anybody looking to pony up for a ticket.
Realistically, the 76ers and Hinkie were probably right to break the team up when Hinkie took over. In 2011-12, Philadelphia was the eighth seed in the Eastern Conference playoffs. They shook the basketball world when they defeated the Chicago Bulls in the first round, then took the Boston Celtics to six games in the second. In 2012-13, their regular season record dropped by a mere one game, but they failed to make the playoffs. That’s when Hinkie was hired away from the Houston Rockets, and he promptly traded Jrue Holiday (their best player) to the New Orleans Pelicans. Since then, Philly has went 19-63 and 18-64, bringing us to the present.
Trading Holiday was symbolic of what was to come. Philadelphia was, and is trying to accumulate as many picks and future assets as possible. But in the NBA, players drafted outside the top-15 or so rarely pan out. The success of Hinkie’s vision could be totally dependent on a couple of those picks hitting it big. The draft picks the Sixers have acquired are impressive in the sheer number, but less so when you dig into where those picks project, and the value they hold.
In Part 3, we’ll lay out the draft picks Philadelphia has accumulated, and forecast a bit as to where those picks will get the 76ers going forward. Ultimately, those picks will dictate the path of the Philadelphia 76ers rebuild.
Main Photo: Nov 6, 2015; Cleveland, OH, USA; Philadelphia 76ers center Jahlil Okafor (8) at Quicken Loans Arena. Mandatory Credit: Ken Blaze-USA TODAY Sports
