After one of the most pivotal offseasons in franchise history, the Philadelphia 76ers’ roster is among the NBA’s best. Here are the grades for the summer.
The Philadelphia 76ers, as expected, spent the significant wealth they accrued over the past few years this offseason. What wasn’t quite expected: The assemblage of players.
Nearly two months removed from the Toronto Raptors dethroning the Golden State Warriors, an NBA championship — for the first time in recent memory — appears to be in the realm of possibility for numerous teams. With star-studded duos of LeBron James/Anthony Davis, Kawhi Leonard/Paul George, James Harden/Russell Westbrook, Nikola Jokic/Jamal Murray and Damian Lillard/CJ McCollum spearheading the roster reconstruction this offseason, it’s clear that we now live in a world where conceding to the Warriors is no longer applicable; the Western Conference has its new favorites in line.
As for the East — where Kevin Durant resides for the first time in his Hall of Fame career — there is no shortage of premier juggernauts to throw into the ongoing jibber-jabber. Assuming Durant is sidelined for most of the 2019-20 season, Kyrie Irving and the Brooklyn Nets will need to be more tolerant than others. While the rehab of their former MVP forward is of vital importance, it would be wrong to seal their fate this early on.
And then you have Giannis Antetokounmpo, arguably the most dominant basketball figure across the NBA landscape, accompanied by the majority of his 60-win Milwaukee Bucks team returning with a vengeance after last season’s conclusion.
Which brings us to the Sixers — once bereft of All-Star talent, have constructed (another) starting lineup capable of securing multiple rings. But will this new roster make it so? They have yet to make it to the Eastern Conference Finals with Joel Embiid and Ben Simmons as the cornerstones. Is it presumptuous to already deem them as favorites? Is head coach Brett Brown truly capable of pushing them to their full potential? These are just a few of the questions that will be answered in the next campaign.
For now, here’s a look at their complete 2019 offseason, with grades for every single move they made in the draft and in free agency.