Philadelphia 76ers
The 2019-20 Philadelphia 76ers season can be defined by the fact that the Sixers got swept in the first round by the Celtics and finally fired Brett Brown.
What did we learn?
Before the season began, we were already disappointed in the Sixers.
Sure, we picked them to hit the Over on their wins total (narrator: they did not) and we even said that we wouldn’t be surprised if they steamrolled to The Finals (narrator: they did NOT), but you can tell from how brief and bare our season preview was that we just weren’t into this reiteration of the Sixers.
It’s because The Process is SO dead.
And then to see that it resulted in the catastrophic disappointment of the 2019-20 Sixers is such a bummer. This is unfortunately what eventually happens to most young surprise teams.
The Sixers were designed to stop the Greek Freak, but they never even got the chance. Yes, Ben Simmons was hurt and missed the playoffs, but it didn’t matter. These Sixers were always toast and Brett Brown was gone fishin’ before they made it out of the bubble.
Brett Brown was not able to find consistent crunch-time scoring. He was not able to get this offense to deliver. The Sixers were a middling 14th in offensive efficiency and their 8th ranked defense wasn’t as good as it should have been.
It just doesn’t appear so far that Embiid and Simmons can really play together. When one is out, the other would thrive (in the regular season). We have always wanted to believe it can work, but it just doesn’t look like it can, at least without the right complementary pieces.
The Horford contract looks ridiculously ugly, but people don’t talk enough about how bad the Tobias Harris one is.
This team needed Jimmy Butler and J.J. Redick. And even T.J. McConnell for that matter.
But WAIT — maybe Doc and Daryl will save them!
The Process is ALIVEEEEEE!
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What are the answers to our Season Preview Final Questions?
Who will step up and carry the Sixers bench unit? The prime suspects include a mix of vets and youngin’s. The vets: Mike Scott, James Ennis and Trey Burke. The youngin’s: Zhaire Smith, Shake Milton and rookie Matisse Thybulle.
James Ennis was traded and Trey Burke was waived. Thybulle was a defensive revelation but mostly an offensive liability. Shake Milton emerged!
Does the lack of speed present a bigger issue for the ginormous set lineup?
Yes, yes it did.
Who is going to be able to score on this defense?
Plenty of folks, actually.
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Would our preseason Over/Under prediction have hit?
We won’t be surprised in the least if Philly steamrolls to the Finals. OVER 54.5 wins. (66% winning pct)
76ers 2019-20 final record: (43-30) 59% winning pct
Nope, our preseason Over/Under prediction would not have hit. Philly did NOT steamroll to the Finals. They got swept in the first round.
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What’s Next?
Doc is here! And so is Dave Joeger!! And HOT DAMN, Daryl Morey as well!!! Daryl can finish what Hinkie started.
Figure out at long last how to get Embiid and Simmons to really play together.
Can Daryl get Ben Simmons to actually shoot threes?
Trade Horford for Buddy Hield?
Need some shooters! That’s how it can work with Embiid and Simmons together. Like when they had J.J. and RoCo and Belinelli and llysova.
Need some ball handlers, too.
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Favorite Sixers Highlight from the 2019-20 Season:
Embiid power dunked through John Collins. And then shimmied right in the poor guy’s face.
Power Dunk Rating: 4.7 out of 5.
