Philadelphia 76ers: 3 takeaways from 2019 NBA offseason

1. Small ball is a myth

Although the more-famous Kevin O’Connor of The Ringer recently made this phrase popular, it’s been the NBA’s hidden truth for years. What people called “small-ball” (myself included, sparingly) was really just “skill ball” that your average lumbering center couldn’t hang with.

The Warriors weren’t world-beaters because they went small; they were world-beaters because they deployed two of the best shooters ever, arguably the second-best scorer ever, and an incredibly versatile defender who acted as a secondary playmaker.

There’s no height requirement or size limit to countering that; only injury luck.

Really, the NBA has become about attacking mismatches and weaknesses. Surely if five players of Joel Embiid’s height and skills existed, they could all share the floor; it’s just unfathomable to imagine five humans on this Earth of that ilk.

But Elton Brand is going to die trying. The Sixers will deploy a starting lineup who’s smallest player is a 6’6″, 200-pound Josh Richardson. The only players currently on the roster smaller than that are Smith, Milton and Raul Neto.

The Thiccsers are in full tow and the content is going to be exquisite.

Even with a defensive liability (and non-threat to drive into the teeth of defenses) like Redick, Philly was feared. Danny Green, former Toronto Raptor, made it clear that the eventual 2018-19 champions wanted nothing to do with Philadelphia, per ESPN’s Zach Lowe.

Their size was overwhelming on both ends, even for the eventual champs.

Replacing Redick and Butler with Richardson and Horford is a huge upgrade on defense. Offensively, it will be intriguing to see how the Thiccsers generate points.

A lot of pundits have cited this team as a better regular season product than the 2018-19 iteration, but really it’s just a better team overall.

All five starters are not only good defenders (Tobias is average, but held his own on Marc Gasol in that playoff series), but can create offense in multiple ways.

Simmons is one of the best passers and drivers in the league, Richardson has experience running the offense for Miami, Harris is clearly a scorer with initiator traits, Horford is the most well-rounded big in the league and Embiid is, well, absurd.

In addition, the other elite teams are also built around thicc bois.

The Clippers just poached Kawhi Leonard and Paul George, the two best wings in the league. The Lakers sport LeBron James and Anthony Davis, two transcendent and supersized talents. The Bucks are led by the Greek Freak.

When you don’t have the best shooter ever, it helps to have overwhelming power across your lineup.

Elton Brand doesn’t have a “power forward” obsession; he has a mismatch obsession. The true rewards of that style will not manifest until the playoffs.