It is Year 3 of the Philadelphia 76ers’ rebuild, but things are starting to unravel for them.
It has been a frustrating start to the season for Philadelphia 76ers’ young prospect Jahlil Okafor. After a successful college rookie season with Duke where he won numerous accolades, Okafor was drafted by the 76ers and entered their now infamous “Process.”
Despite this being the third year of their rebuild, the 76ers don’t seem to have made any headway and are sporting an 0-16 start to the season.
Things got worse for Okafor and the 76ers when it was later released that Okafor had gotten into a street fight with individuals who taunted him after their 16th straight loss. Add this to the “Save Jahlil” movement that Duke fans are starting, and it’s clear that Okafor is having a tough time with the 76ers’ Process.
But, could you really blame him? Okafor is coming off a NCAA college title, was touted by many to be a top-3 lottery pick, and could end up becoming one of the best young centers in the league. Instead of the dream he had, he’s playing on a team that has no interest in winning now.
The “Save Jahlil” video may have been humorous, but watching Okafor’s shoulders slump as his teammates make simple mistakes, or to see him walk back into the locker room after yet another loss, you have to wonder: how much more can this young man take?
The problem with the 76ers’ tanking plan is their disinterest at getting better on the court. Rapid player improvement scares the front office, as it will result in more wins, which affects their drafting position. Michael Carter-Williams might not end up as an All-Star, but they ended up giving him away for nothing – the 76ers have nothing to show for him as of now.
Things might change if they end up getting the Lakers’ pick in the high lottery range, but that’s another 2-3 years of developing a youngster, with no guarantees that he will pan out to be better than MCW.
Contrast the 76ers with the Minnesota Timberwolves and you’ll see two very different approaches to rebuilding a team. Both teams have decided to bottom out completely, but the Timberwolves aren’t afraid of altering their schedule by speeding it up and signing players that might improve the roster in the short term.
The Wolves are in Year 2 of their rebuild, but seem so much further ahead than the 76ers do. If the 76ers and the Wolves had swapped front offices when the Wolves started their rebuild, it’s fair to assume that Ricky Rubio and Nikola Pekovic would have been traded. Instead, the Wolves kept them, added more young talent, and weren’t afraid of winning games.
The Wolves’ offseason moves also showed their intention with this team: they traded for Kevin Garnett last season and signed him to an extension this offseason, they signed Tayshaun Prince and Andre Miller – all veterans that should rarely see court time, but will provide the leadership that this young team sorely needs.
The 76ers need to take a leaf out of the Wolves’ book because things could end up unravelling fast for them. They have no veteran leadership and are relying solely on coach Brett Brown to police the roster. The constant losing will breed bad habits and a complacent attitude towards losing. They need to start embracing improvement instead of shunning it and deliberately handicapping themselves for a higher pick.
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Jahlil’s frustrations this early into the season should be concerning to 76ers’ fans. If this is after 16 losses, just imagine the toll the constant losing will take on Okafor two seasons in. It’s easy to blame his immaturity in handling the situation, but we are starting to see the 76ers’ plan unravel here.