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The Philadelphia 76ers unclogged the toilet this offseason. What the heck does this mean? They created roster balance. On draft night, the Sixers traded big man Al Horford, who's one season through a four-year, $109 million deal, the 34th pick in last month's NBA Draft, the rights to Vasilije Micic, and a future first-round draft pick to the Oklahoma City Thunder for guard Danny Green.
The Sixers also traded Josh Richardson and the rights to Colorado forward Tyler Bey (the 36th selection in last month's NBA Draft) to the Dallas Mavericks for guard Seth Curry. With the 21st pick in the draft Philadelphia selected Kentucky guard Tyrese Maxey. In free agency, they inked veteran center Dwight Howard to a one-year, $2.6 million deal.
Superficially, these moves seem like mere salary dumps and rotation tweaks. In actuality, they're the complete opposite: they move the 76ers forward.
New Sixers head coach Doc Rivers got exactly what his team needed: wing shooting and scoring in-between Ben Simmons and Joel Embiid.
Green, a career 40.0 percent shooter from beyond the arc, is an efficient shooter who plays stout on-ball and perimeter defense; Curry, a career 44.3 percent shooter from beyond the arc, is an exceptional shooter who's capable of shooting and scoring off the dribble; Maxey flashed an ability to get to the rim and score off the dribble at Kentucky; Howard gives Philly a capable starter who finishes inside to backup Embiid.
Last season the Sixers were ninth in the NBA in three-point shooting percentage (36.8 percent). However, a handful of catalysts to that efficiency, like Raul Neto and midseason acquisitions Alec Burks and Glenn Robinson III, left southeastern Pennsylvania in free agency. The new recruits should help keep Philadelphia in the upper portion of the sport in perimeter shooting. They'll also enhance an offensive attack that was surprisingly 20th in the NBA in points per game last season (110.7).
These players fit in alongside Simmons and Embiid; they won't get in their way. When Simmons drives the lane or roams around the perimeter with the ball, he has outside snipers to pass to. Furthermore, with the bulk of defenses focusing on Simmons and Embiid, the likes of Tobias Harris, Curry, and Maxey can score at considerable rates in their respective roles. Howard can also play a similar role to Embiid when he comes into the game.
Rivers' unit is well equipped for one of the team's offensive mainstays missing time due to injury. If Simmons, who's coming off a season-ending knee injury, misses time, Rivers has a bevy of guards accustomed to starting and scoring who can step in and assume the vacant minutes.
In this scenario, the 76ers' offense would be even more reliant on Embiid, likely resulting in more halfcourt play. Curry and Green are capable of picking up the slack offensively, and the roster's knack for stretching the floor would come in handy.
If Embiid, who has a deep-rooted injury history, misses time, the 76ers' offense shouldn't change. Howard slides into the starting position and operates in the paint. Everyone else plays their game.
The issue with Horford was never his contract. Of course, his production and impact never equated to the contract general manager Elton Brand gave him last summer. The issue was Horford's fit with the rest of their core. With Horford out of the equation, Harris can attack off the dribble and be his slimy-scoring self. Philly's top three scorers can play their game while the rest of the rotation plays around them; that's what got them on the right track in the 2017-18 NBA season to begin with.
There's no impediment or excuse for Simmons and Embiid to be stunted late in games. It's their operation, and they can play to their strengths. New president Daryl Morey did for the former top-three draft picks what he attempted to do over and over with the Houston Rockets: get players who complemented the stars.
Are the Sixers the best team in the Eastern Conference? They are not. The Miami Heat, Milwaukee Bucks, and Brooklyn Nets look better talent-wise and from a continuity and fit standpoint. That said, such an assessment is based on their performances in recent memory continuing in the upcoming season. If the tinkered 76ers fire on all cylinders offensively, they're a legitimate NBA championship contender.
The 76ers getting past the second round of the playoffs and simply breaking through is now solely reliant on their star duo. They're getting paid max money to do as such and are going to have the ball in their hands on an overwhelming basis; this is the way it's supposed to be.
A new mind in the front office, fresh faces on the sidelines to adjust the franchise cornerstones and rotation as a whole (Rivers' coaching staff includes tenured coaches like Dave Joerger and Sam Cassell) and new faces in the rotation is perfect at this juncture for the Sixers.
