The Season to Come: Philadelphia 76ers

Philly's season last year was short of being a train wreck and comedy, but there is hope in next season with their picks and if they kick the ground running straightaway

Philadelphia 76ers started out the season full of optimism and pushed for contending for the NBA Championship. With this in mind, the front office signed Paul George to a a huge deal making the second highest in their roster. In fact, this took a huge chunk of their salary cap.

Unfortunately, everything that could go wrong, went wrong.

When they signed PG, they thought they were signing one of the best 3 and D wingers in the league. In the end, he became a meme as the team was in the thick of the season to a point that someone pointed out how he has released more clips and episodes from his podcast compared to field goals made.

This is not what you want to hear from the public when talking about one of your higher paid players.

Additionally, it was injury after injury among the players they were hoping to contribute in the offensive end.

First, Paul George was injured almost in the same game after he decided to take a break from podcasting. Embiid sustained his injury a game after. This is on top of their promising rookie suffering an injury to his knee a month prior to these.

In the end, what started out to be a season of hope in the City of Brotherly Love turned into a disappointment, and ultimately a failure that stopped them from even taking a step on towards contention.

The Work:

Let us start with the most appalling fact for one of the most expensive rosters in the NBA – ranking the worst in rebounding in the association. They had not had this kind of problem since the 2015-2016 season.

This is appalling because it should not happen when a team has one of the best big men in the league. Breaking it down, they have the worst number of offensive boards by the end of the season, and this might have a direct correlation to their inability to chuck shots up which should have given them a chance of putting up more points on the board. In fact, they also ranked one of the worst ten teams in field goal attempts.

What compounds this problem is their inability to defend, and problems can be noted from the backcourt to the front.

Taking all these into consideration, you can see that these problems were in the front office’s minds when picking the players in the draft.

The Picks:

VJ Edgecombe

Picked at number three, what stands out when looking him play is his explosive athleticism. This allows him to be crafty in the air when met by defenders, but strong enough to bulldoze through them if needed. This, combined with his quickness of the dribble, as soon as he is off, especially in a fast break, defenders will have a hard time catching up to him.

Whether this will translate to the NBA, where opposition is quicker and faster, remains to be seen.

Although primarily beneficial in the offensive end, these same attributes help in both rebounding and in defense.

His athleticism can be used in the offensive boards, and in rebounds, in general.

This has also helped him as a defensive player in rejecting oppositions in the air. He also uses his strength to either blitz the ballhandler, intimidating them into a turnover or take the ball with force jumpstarting a fast break. Although, he is fully capable of anticipating plays that gives him the opportunity to cut the passing lanes for a steal averaging 2.1 a game in steals in college.

On the downside, this level of confidence in himself might lead him to chuck shots from deep which he has not shown to be capable of consistently making them. In college, he has averaged 34% from deep while attempting them at nearly five a game. This could easily be coached out of him, urge him to take smarter shots considering how he has a flurry of moves that will let him get points on the board in any other way.

Or, improved as the season goes along.

Johni Broome

As someone who values consistency, I am especially excited about Johni Broome. He is one of the most decorated college players in the game, and it is obvious why Philly picked him where they picked him when they realize that he was still available.

Broome, from what I can see, is one of the most consistent players in college last season, and years prior to that. He has made over 50 percent of his shots from inside the arc and is fully capable of stretching the floor, if there is no other option but to shoot.

You can see in his movement that this is not what he would prefer, but he can make the ball go through the net, when needed.

Although, he knows when to pass when he sees an open and better option on the court.

What stands out the most, that the 76ers must have also noticed, is his consistency when it comes to defense and rebounding.

In his years in college, he has averaged at least 2 blocks a game, with as high as 3.9. This is mostly due to his impeccable timing on the jump, and he can do it on a regular basis. Additionally, he has averaged close to or double digits in rebounds his entire time in college as well, twice averaging 10.8, on two occasions.

He is technically an all-rounder who can plug in the holes in both defense and be a consistent contributor in the offense.

Hunter Sallis

An undrafted player that 76ers have picked, for his scoring ability. He can score in bunches when given a chance and the minutes needed to work.

This is evident when his minutes per game jumped when he moved programs where his scoring output jumped from 4 point per game to 18. He is also a willing passer who, when the defense collapses on to him, finds the next possible scoring option. Although, he has the tendency to force it himself.

Additionally, he has the potential to become a three-point threat as evidenced by averaging for 40.5% from deep in one year. However, this is the only time he averaged such efficiency. Again, whether this is due to the increased minutes, or he just had a career year from beyond the arc, Philly will find out as they work with him throughout the season.

Philadelphia knows where their shortcomings and it shows that they are trying to address this as soon as possible, and they are starting with individuals who can do it on both end of the court.

Whether it is due to their natural talent or their consistency, what they have picked are players who are potential all-rounders who can easily plug in the gaps where necessary. Although, this is will only work if those they are relying on to consistently score for them, come back to the level that they were signed for.

Prediction: Potential top 4 in the East, only if the guys coming back kick off the ground running.