Top 2016 Offseason Priorities for the Philadelphia 76ers

The Philadelphia 76ers are not a very good basketball team. There probably isn’t going to be a lot of controversy over that statement. That they aren’t that far from being one probably is controversial.

The Sixers started their offseason before the season ended when they hired Jerry Colangelo to advise management. In layman’s terms, that means he was brought on board to drive a stake through the heart of #TrustTheProcess.

“The Process” was the idea of being bad by design to accrue high draft picks, mine for gold in passed-over prospects and then, when the time was right, spend money in free agency to complement the young stars.

On April 7, general manager and president of basketball operations Sam Hinkie resigned. Over the course of his three years at the helm, Philadelphia won 47 games, 18 fewer than any team in the league, according to Basketball-Reference.com. The being bad part of the plan was working. But patience was wearing thin with both the fans and the owners.

On the last day of the season, shortly before the Sixers got blown out in Chicago, Colangelo told Bob Cooney of the Philadelphia Daily News:

The thought was, obviously, when ownership reached out and wanted me to be a part of the process, that was an indication that they had tired of three years of whatever they saw. So there was going to be a detour of some kind, and it was the conclusion that we needed to reinforce the front office.

No one ever, ever had an intention of Sam being let go, fired or anything. That was never a consideration. Everyone was on the same page, including myself. This was more about bringing help into the organization, share responsibilities, and we would be a stronger front office.

What I told Sam was, 'You need to listen to ownership. If you're listening, they're saying they want to do what they want to do.' So this means they're a little tired of the wait or the pain or whatever, which means the first step was when they brought me in, that was an indicator. And then the second step was they wanted to add someone in the front office, and they tried to retain Sam. I said to Sam, 'This would be great if you're willing and have someone come in here and share. We'd be stronger than heck.' Our front office would be out of sight, I thought. Sam made his own decision and I respect that. I respect the fact that he said, 'I can't do that.' That's what happened.

The funny thing here is that the new GM, Jerry’s son Bryan, actually gets to inherit all the benefits of the “process” without taking the dings that come with it. And it’s with those intact that he can go about establishing a better tenure in Philly. Making the right moves this offseason will go a long way toward building a bright future. 

Spring Cleaning

My wife loves garage sales. The good thing about them is you can get some really cool stuff on the cheap. One man's trash is another man’s treasure and all that. The bad part of that is you also collect a lot of junk you don’t need. Hinkie was the NBA equivalent of that, picking up other teams' discarded players and collecting them on his roster.

Here is a look at players presently under contract for next season, according to Spotrac.com:

* Non-Guaranteed, **Club Option

There is obviously no problem with cap space here, but the issue is with roster spots. There are 12 players under contract, so bringing new guys on board requires letting some go.

They have as many as four first-round picks this draft as well as Dario Saric reportedly coming over, per David Pick. And there is $60-plus million in cap space to spend.

Not everyone that Hinkie brought on board is worth discarding. Jerami Grant has the stuff to be a quality role player, as does Robert Covington.

However, Kendall Marshall is going to be easy. Isaiah Canaan had some big moments, but Sixer fans aren’t going to be beside themselves if he’s not on the team next year. Hollis Thompson and T.J. McConnell aren’t worth keeping around either, but there might be feelings attached to them.

There’s also the possibility that Philly could use its D-League affiliate, the Delaware 87ers, to develop players instead of its NBA team (crazy, right?). That way it could keep some guys around but still create roster spots since the salaries are nominal.

The Sixers could send McConnell, Nik Stauskas, Covington/Grant and even Joel Embiid (for a time since he last played March 1, 2014) or the latter picks. In this way, they could effectively play with an 18-man roster, juggling end-of-the-bench guys to get them time.

But even with that, it’s time to do some spring cleaning and discard some of the “junk."

Clear Up the Big-Man Jumble

The Sixers have done an outstanding job of collecting big men who can’t play together. I’m not sure if that was the goal, though.

Nerlens Noel is the best defensive player. Jahlil Okafor is the best offensive player. But Noel is probably more worth keeping around, and Okafor probably has higher trade value.  

And there’s a good chance the latter is gone this summer, as reported by Keith Pompey of the Philadelphia Inquirer:

Similar players, Okafor and Embiid are an unlikely pairing. They are both liabilities guarding athletic power forwards and chasing stretch fours on the perimeter. So the belief is that the Sixers may try to move Okafor this summer if Embiid is healthy. If he isn’t, they have to decide between Okafor and Noel.

The Boston Herald had reported that the Sixers had a deal in place to trade Okafor to the Boston Celtics at the Feb. 18 trade deadline. The team denied that report and has always publicly praised the rookie. And it should. He’s been fun to watch on the offensive end.

Either way, if Okafor goes, who comes back?

Philly fans like entertaining the idea of a D’Angelo Russell swap, but the Los Angeles Lakers probably say no. That would fit the biggest need the Sixers have, though, which is an authentic offense-creating point guard. You know things are bad when Ish Smith is a difference-maker.

If Al Horford walks away from the Atlanta Hawks, a Jeff Teague swap makes sense for both sides.

It might even make sense to roll the dice on Derrick Rose, who showed flashes of All-Star-caliber play toward the end of the season. Include one of the Sixers' lower picks to Chicago and Taj Gibson coming back in the deal, and that could be a steal everyone wins. Contract length is an issue, but maybe a chance for a fresh start is enough for Rose to agree to an extension.

The specifics might vary, but the goal is a true starting-caliber point guard who can generate points for his teammates, and Okafor can fetch one of those.

Draft for Need

The Sixers have a 25 percent chance at the No. 1 pick in the draft.

Ben Simmons might have the higher upside and the edge in hype, but DraftExpress has moved Brandon Ingram to the top of its rankings. He shot 41.0 percent from deep on 5.4 attempts per game.

The Sixers don’t need to worry about who the best player available is. They need to worry about who the best player is for them. And the case there is Ingram.

That is not the only pick they have this draft, though. There’s a 44.2 percent chance the Lakers don’t draw a top-three ball, and the Sixers own the selection if that happens, according to Real GM. With it, they could take lights-out shooter Buddy Hield, who shot 45.7 percent on a ridiculous 8.7 three-point attempts per game.

Then factor in the possibility of Saric coming over, who shot 40.3 percent from deep in Euroleague last year, and that’s a lot of shooting where there was none.

The Sixers can draft the best player available with the other two picks they have (No. 24 from the Miami Heat and No. 26 from the Oklahoma City Thunder) because if they’re doing the rest right, those players shouldn’t be playing too important of a role right off the bat.

Fill in Gaps Spending Money in Free Agency

You’d be silly to not at least give Kevin Durant a phone call, but he probably won't pick up. Even guys like Harrison Barnes and Nicolas Batum are probably out of the Sixers' league until they show a commitment to winning.

That doesn’t mean the team can’t do something in free agency, though. After all, it will have $60 million to spend (minus whatever contracts it picks up in trades). And spending is part of how it can show that commitment to winning.

But let’s recap who the Sixers have when free agency starts July 1 if they follow my aforementioned map.

They would have a starting point guard, such as Rose or Teague. At the wings, they would have the rookies Hield (possibly) and Ingram, along with returning veterans, Grant and Covington. Then Saric, Richaun Holmes, Noel, Carl Landry and Embiid fill out the frontcourt, along with the possibility of Taj Gibson.

At that point, a reliable backup point guard and another wing are the main priorities. And with $15 million apiece to spend on them, it would be easy enough.

You might have to “overpay” to show future free agents you’re serious. But with the right attitude and a little wisdom, players such as Jeremy Lin, Brandon Jennings, E’Twaun Moore, Kent Bazemore, Jordan Clarkson, Allen Crabbe or Evan Fournier would all be worth pursuing. It might even be worth throwing an incentive-laden bone Ty Lawson’s way.

It should only take the Sixers one summer to get a competitive roster. And there’s a good chance if they improve dramatically next year, Colangelo gets Executive of the Year. But remember, in many ways it is Hinkie who did the foundation work.