The Sixers Are Constructing a Contender the Right Way
In today’s NBA, there are a gamut of blueprints employed in attempting to build a championship contender. The Sixers have pursued a strategy that might actually work.
From a superficial view, the Philadelphia 76ers look like they took a big hit this offseason. They not only lost Jimmy Butler, who’s one of the most talented players in the league, they also saw J.J. Reddick, one of the best three-point shooters in the NBA, flee in free agency. His ability to space the floor in particular, was invaluable next to Ben Simmons.
In hopes of replacing those two, the 76ers brought in Al Horford and Josh Richardson. The two vets don’t carry nearly the same flash that Butler and Reddick do, but you’d be mistaken to think they aren’t talented. From a pure talent standpoint, the team may have a lost out, but Philly has actually increased their chances of winning an NBA Finals immensely.
Don’t Knock The Talent
Even with the losses of Reddick and Butler, the 76ers still have one of the scariest starting lineups in the league. Simmons is one of the best passers in the league and an equally adept scorer. His jump shot is obviously still a huge question mark and is subject to much criticism, but he’s proven to be an extremely impactful player who affects all facets of the game.
Two-way stud Joel Embiid may very well be the best center in the league. He’s a dominant force that can score in a variety of ways and defend at a very high level. Combo forward Tobias Harris will forever remain underrated and underappreciated. He’s a high IQ, efficient scorer with a beautiful shooting stroke and underrated finishing ability.
The offseason acquisitions of Horford and Richardson are sure to pay major dividends. Horford’s savvy all-around game and solid three-point stroke are a perfect fit for today’s NBA. While he’ll never blow anyone away on the stat sheet, he provides steady contributions while playing elite defense night in and night out
Josh Richardson remains one of the best wings in the NBA that nobody talks about. He came into the league as an excellent defender and a solid spot-up three-point shooter but since then, he has vastly improved his offensive game. Richardson showed out last season as a much-improved scorer and playmaker with career highs of 16.6 points and 4.1 assists. With Horford and Richardson, the 76ers have the type of talent needed to go far in the playoffs.
The New Blueprint
Nowadays, NBA teams are looking to build rosters differently than years past. While the league has clearly been taken over by superteams in the last few years, there’s more to it. Having all the pieces fits together is just as important as the stars on your roster. The role players, spacing, defense, chemistry, it’s all about how it comes together.
“You’ve probably heard the ‘we want to play position-less basketball’ notion before. We’re in a different era now, with a premium placed on versatility. Teams desire big men that can handle the ball, players that can guard multiple positions and of course, guys that can shoot the three-ball. It’s these sorts of nuances that have defined the modern-day NBA.”
And these playoffs we saw the Toronto Raptors succeed with a different approach. Behind one superstar in Kawhi Leonard, the Raptors won with balanced scoring, elite defense and unselfish play. Teams constantly honed in on Kawhi and when they would double him, the Raptors had the shooting to make opposing teams pay. The Raptors had four or five guys on the court at all times that could shoot from distance.
Even when the defense did a good job of covering up shooters, Kawhi had the luxury of hitting teammates like Pascal Siakam, Marc Gasol and Kyle Lowry. He had true playmakers who could not only create their own shot but had the versatility to handle the ball and score from almost any place on the floor.
But the most important thing for the Raptors this past season was the defense. Toronto had fantastic individual defenders, but they also had the personnel to switch every matchup and play excellent help defense. Just about everyone on this team had a plus wingspan. It was the length that allowed them to be disruptive on switches and double teams, but still gave them the flexibility to recover to open shooters.
It’s a model that a ton of teams have taken on. Golden State, Boston, Milwaukee, these are teams that put together elite defensive team with their length. It’s a new era, teams aren’t able to isolate and effectively go one-on-one anymore. With the way teams double team nowadays, it’s not about having just a few individual defenders, you need to play defense as one unit to be successful.
Length, Length, and Length
When the 76ers started to make their offseason moves, fans were in awe of how large this team was becoming, particularly this HUGE starting lineup:
Ben Simmons: 6'10
Josh Richardson: 6'6
Tobias Harris: 6'9
Al Horford: 6'10
Joel Embiid: 7'0
The shortest player on this roster is 6’6”, but even he has a 6’10” wingspan.
Like Milwaukee and Toronto, the length on this team is sure to create havoc on the defensive side. The 76ers are primed to be in elite defensive company. Simmons and Embiid are already well established lockdown defenders, but Harris is a solid defender who plays hard on that side of the ball.
From the moment he entered the league, Richardson’s calling card was defense. He’s a top-notch defender with the ability to cover multiple positions. And Horford is a versatile defensive piece that can cover guards on the perimeter, bang bodies down low with the best post threats, and even cover freaks of nature like Giannis Antetokounmpo. Philly has the personnel and the size to put the fear of gods in teams on the defensive side.
Spacing & Versatility To Succeed
Defense is going to be key, but that’s really only half the equation. A strong offensive attack will be a necessity for the 76ers to be a true Finals contender. The past few years spacing has become so important with the way defenses are constructed that stars legitimately struggle when they have no shooters around them.
Philly has done a great getting a ton of reliable three-point shooting on this team. Richardson has turned into an excellent shooter who can work off the dribble or in the flow of the offense. The same can be said for Harris. Horford and Embiid can be spot-up shooters that have reliable three-point strokes. Even the bench gives you some solid spacing with guys like James Ennis and Mike Scott.
The entire 76ers lineup, all five guys, have the versatility to handle the ball in any situation. In transition, in the half-court, you have a group of guys who can create shots for themselves and others. Simmons and Embiid are generally ball-dominant, but Horford, Richardson, and Harris are all willing to take lesser roles and still remain effective and efficient in this pass-centric offense.
Final Thoughts
You have to love the way general manager Elton Brand has put this team together. As someone who understands the NBA and where it’s heading, Brand has done a fantastic job adapting to the times. Fit and chemistry are just as important as star power, and Philly has realized that. So are the Philadelphia 76ers a championship-caliber team? Absolutely.
All statistics courtesy of Basketball-Reference.com.
