The Philadelphia 76ers are having a successful season so far. At 20-8, they sit in second place in the Eastern Conference behind the Milwaukee Bucks. At the same time, the Sixers are only one game away from slipping all the way down to sixth in the East.
The expectation coming into the season for the Sixers was that they would be title contenders. While it's entirely too early to fully predict the potential of the team, there are some things that could use some work if they want to completely separate themselves as kings of the East.
Davis Bertans
Bertans is a candidate for Most Improved Player this season. After spending nearly three seasons with the San Antonio to start his career, Bertans was traded to the Washington Wizards in July.
Given an increased role in Washington, the 6-foot-10 Latvian has blossomed. Primarily coming off the bench, Bertans is averaging a career-high 15.4 points and 4.6 rebounds per game.
Bertans isn't a traditional big man. The fourth-year pro is the definition of a stretch 4 — a role he fills exceptionally well.
The Wizards power forward is chucking up over eight triples a game and hitting them at a 45.7 percent clip. Of the nine NBA players attempting that many shots from outside, Bertans leads them all in shooting percentage by a wide margin.
With the Sixers ranking 24th in the league in 3-pointers made per game, Bertans could be the perfect role player to ease the team's shooting woes. While Washington isn't inclined to trade him right now ahead of his free agency, perhaps Philadelphia can make it worthwhile by offering up some juicy draft assets.
Derrick Rose
The Sixers could use another scorer on the roster. For a team as good as Philadelphia, ranking a mediocre 14th in the NBA in offensive efficiency is a bit odd. Yet, that's the situation the Sixers are in.
No offense to Trey Burke and Raul Neto, who have played fairly well this season, but adding a talent like former MVP Derrick Rose could help put Philadelphia over the top.
No, Rose is not the player he used to be, but everyone knows that. What he is, though, is a dynamic scoring guard who has vastly improved his 3-point shot in recent years (33.9 percent this season).
This season for the Detroit Pistons, Rose is averaging 16.6 points and 6.1 assists in only 24.2 minutes per game off the bench. Rose would have a similar role in Philadelphia and could be exactly what the team needs.
Burke is a bit of a streaky scorer and Neto just doesn't offer much of a scoring punch. Rose signed a two-year, $15 million dollar contract with the Pistons this offseason, so they might not want to trade him just yet if they want to make a playoff push. However, Philadelphia should monitor his situation and make a play if he's available.
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