The Philadelphia 76ers are being ruined, not bolstered, by Sam Hinkie’s “Process.”
It’s been a few years now since general manager Sam Hinkie started “The Process” with his Philadelphia 76ers. It wasn’t much of a plan, but it was one, and it set the lowly Sixers apart from teams like Brooklyn that have nowhere to go. Hinkie decided to strip everything and begin with the foundation all over again, only adding the extras as he sees fit.
The problem with the Process is that, so far, it hasn’t been very successful. Trying to completely change the face of a franchise via the draft is not easy. Put very simply, you have to get lucky. You can do all of the scouting you want, but what if it’s just a bad class, for example?
You have to get lucky.
It’s been a long time since Philly has been that, and through their time shedding players (why get rid of K.J. McDaniels?) and acquiring picks, they’ve managed to draft a slew of big men who haven’t quite been up to the franchise player snuff.
Nerlens Noel has been good and is still learning, but he’s not someone you can build a team around. Joel Embiid hasn’t even played a game yet and, personally, the fear that he could become the next Greg Oden should be prevalent in Philly’s minds. They showed that it was when they drafted Jahlil Okafor last summer, and so far he’s been arguably their best player to come from “The Process.”
Even so, the 76ers are a horrific 0-18 right now and are breaking records in all the wrong ways. If something significant doesn’t come out of this season (Ben Simmons?) then Hinkie could finally come under the collective, burning ire of all Philly fans. And rightfully so.
Because here’s what “The Process” does. Remember McDaniels’ mom last season tweeting about Philly screwing over her son?
He got traded. But that sort of chaos has been ratcheted up this season with Okafor getting into a couple different messes. He fought a heckler and was caught on video, and he was also caught driving 108 miles per hour by police.
That’s not so great. Okafor apologized for his actions already, and that’s good to see. And while you can’t blame Hinkie’s “Process” alone for these actions, it’s a great place to start.
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What happens when you take a great college player who won the NCAA championship and then toss him onto a team that’s by far the worst in the NBA? What happens when you surround him with mostly D-League-level guys? What happens when you tell him, “We’re going to lose a lot of games this season, but I want you to try your best!” and he does and yet can’t garner a single win?
Let’s just say we’re lucky Okafor hasn’t been driven to the brink of insanity.
“The Process” is a flawed one. Not only in its attempt to acquire future superstars, but also in how it affects those players when they do come to Philly. The team is not good. Coming into such a situation is not-so-shockingly bad for said player too.
Development is a key part of becoming a great player. Where a guy straight out of the draft lands is extraordinarily important to his career. Philly is just a wasteland right now and all it has to show for it are several picks and the unreliable promise of a positive future.
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Things better hurry up and improve quick. Because Okafor’s early issues are signs that “The Process” is, now more than ever, failing on an epic scale.