Philadelphia 76ers Lacking Promise Without Key Players

The Philadelphia 76ers have been decimated by injuries to main players, which is impeding the team’s late season growth as a unit.

This rash of injuries infiltrating the Philadelphia 76ers roster might not be entirely crippling to the organization, but it certainly will impede the young team’s growth as it finishes the season.

Rookie center Jahlil Okafor missed six consecutive games with a shin contusion before being shut down for the season prior to Friday night’s game with a torn meniscus. Forward Robert Covington was hospitalized with a neck injury after accidentally being roundhouse kicked by teammate Jerami Grant during the Sixers’ win over Brooklyn on Friday.

At 9-57, Philadelphia needs just one more win to avoid matching their previous season-worst mark of 9-73, which is the NBA’s single-season record for most losses. They’re going to be trekking through jagged terrain with a roster far from sturdy, but there are two talents worth monitoring the rest of the season.

Nerlens Noel and Ish Smith look to be holdovers as the season concludes and have the ability to become fixtures in Brett Brown’s rotation for years. With Grant, Covington, Richaun Holmes and Okafor in street clothes, there is an argument that the rest of the roster is in legitimate flux.

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Okafor and Noel’s continuous continuity on the court has been delayed, with Okafor missing the remainder of the 2015-16 season. Brown recently gave the pair a “C” grade, as a tandem, which illustrates the mediocrity that’s currently balancing and capping the Sixers’ ceiling.

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Now, he’ll have to wait until the 2016-17 to see if this pair will materialize into a bonafide and cohesive tandem. With the possible debut of Joel Embiid next season, Brown isn’t solely locked into working out the kinks of the Noel-Okafor duo.

Brown also can’t implement a seldom-used Holmes-Noel pairing with Okafor on the shelf until the former second-round pick returns from an Achilles injury. The Bowling Green State product, per Calkins Media’s Tom Moore, will be out until likely next week.

Holmes has been sneaky-efficient as a Sixer in his rookie campaign, totaling 5.7 points and 2.6 rebounds per game while shooting 51.9 percent from the field. Now is the period of the season where rebuilding teams distribute more playing time to their youth and gauge what they have to work with.

Evidenced by the chart below, Brown could have played with Holmes’ ability to stretch the floor, complementing Noel’s interior game.

Brown still has the option when Holmes returns. Veteran Carl Landry has been occupying the starting power forward gig due to the multiple injuries to the roster.

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What are the benefits of having a 32-year-old career role player start over a 22-year-old rookie? Possibly Brown wants to ease Holmes back into the lineup or have him remain on the second unit upon return.

Holmes had a clear path towards starting with Okafor sidelined, but an injury derailed what could be his first, and possibly only, chance at consistent minutes. Even Grant would’ve been an option at the 4, as he’s started at power forward in the past for the team.

Brown is coaching sans four of the team’s legitimate long-term options. Landry, Hollis Thompson and Isaiah Canaan are currently starting, but likely won’t be utilized next season with the team upgrading heavily in the offseason.

Nik Stauskas, a former first-round pick, scored 15 points on 5-of-10 shooting from the field Saturday against Detroit and could show promise to conclude a disappointing campaign as a shooter.

With a Smith-Stauskas-Grant-Holmes-Noel starting lineup to finish the season, assuming both Grant and Holmes eventually suit up, the Sixers would be putting a product on the floor with some upside.

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Injuries have derailed the possibility of some experimental rotations to manifest, but there still is time for Brown to shake up the lineup and get his youth some valuable minutes over the current rotation.