For the last few years, the Philadelphia 76ers have resorted to being the sat-upon stool of the higher-ups in the Eastern Conference when it comes to overachieving only to underperform when it counts the most. After being eliminated in sweeping fashion against the Boston Celtics in the first round of the playoffs, many assumed that changes were on the horizon.
Former head coach Brett Brown was almost instantly dropped from memory and has now been replaced with highly regarded head coach Doc Rivers. Daryl Morey has taken over in the front office as well, which has been apparent given the number of impressive moves made by the front office so far.
After revamping a roster that'll once again be led by Joel Embiid and Ben Simmons, the Sixers look far better and in a more comfortable position to stake their claim for another deep playoff run in the upcoming season. They won't be the only team that'll be coming in with an improved supporting cast though.
Here are a few predictions for how the season could go for the Sixers.
4. Philly earns the 4th seed
Last season was one of the more unbalanced years that the Sixers have experienced. There weren't too many mouths to feed, but rather not enough styles that could cater to one another on the floor.
While they came out swinging strong at the start of the season, the reality started to sink in that their then-current team was worse than the prior talent they boasted in prior years. All the while, some unexpected dark horses such as the Indiana Pacers and the Miami Heat quietly climbed up the rankings, which left the Sixers scrambling for the sixth seed.
While those teams are all clearly talented in their own respects, the Sixers won't settle for simply being in the lower half of the playoff picture this time around. There's no certainty as to when fans will be allowed back in the arena, but the timeframe of them being present in the playoffs hasn't been ruled out.
Philly is a team that's known to feed off the energy of its fans, which means they'll greatly welcome home court advantage if the idea comes to fruition. With that, expect them to increase their winning record this season and grab the fourth seed.
3. Danny Green shines
The Los Angeles Lakers brought Green in to be one of their top options from 3-point range back in 2019. That didn't pan out during the 2019-20 season, as Green failed to expand on the one area the Lakers coveted from the 33-year-old. As such, he was traded to the Oklahoma City Thunder in the offseason before eventually being moved to the Sixers.
Rivers has already went on record stating that he's been impressed with Green so far during practice. Rivers is known for getting the most out of his 3-point specialist, which should make Green a focal point on offense. The Sixers suffered mightily from that aspect last season, so getting the sharpshooter will be a positive for both them and Green.
Just a year prior, Green was shooting 45 percent form beyond the arc with the Toronto Raptors, and he'll look to return to form this season.
2. Simmons experiment works
Rivers is coming in and looking to get the most from Simmons in every aspect of his game, including shooting. The 6-foot-10 guard is clearly one of the better offense-initiators in the league, but defenses have been quick to slack off on Simmons if he's standing behind the 3-point line, which makes their jobs much easier.
Last season, Simmons shot a total of seven 3-pointers and only made two of his attempts. He's only shot 24 3-point attempts throughout his career, which is less than most elite players shoot in one week. For a point guard, Simmons' shooting woes have to improve, which should've been a focal point of his offseason training regiment.
Developing his shot can transform the Sixers' offense dramatically while also making him practically an unstoppable force. If any of the whispers are true, we could be seeing Simmons launch more threes this year than he has in his entire career.
1. Rivers' Simmons-Embiid experiment flops
Rivers does come with an impressive resume, and that's much of a good reason as any to believe that he can improve the fluidity of the Simmons and Embiid pick-and-roll dynamic. There's no doubt that viewers will see an improved synching from the co-stars after the head coach let out a bit of his plans on how he'll use the two talents this season.
However, it may not be that the problem regarding the two stars was that they were put in the wrong positions on the court, but rather that their styles of play simply aren't meant to coexist on the floor with one another. While Simmons will probably take a considerable amount of shots from midrange at 3-point range this season, he still undoubtedly makes his money in the paint.
As it was viewed, the Sixers couldn't make it work last season with both players and Al Horford hogging the paint. While the front office did rid themselves of Horford's horrid contract, that still leaves Embiid taking up most of the production down low.
The Sixers will be marginally better this season, but the coexistence of their co-stars will still be a problem.
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