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Playoffs and 76ers are two words that don’t belong in the same sentence.
We’re talking about a team that improved to 18-28 following its Jan. 30 112-69 victory over the Milwaukee Bucks. Even with two-straight wins, marking their longest winning streak since late December, they were sitting 18.5 games out of first in the Atlantic Division behind the Boston Celtics.
How is this possible?
Let’s just say the NBA’s Eastern Conference is an absolute joke this year. Through Jan. 30, only six of 15 teams had winning records. The 35-8 Celtics and the 32-13 Detroit Pistons are legitimate championship contenders. The Sixers — without a star attraction — are sitting two games behind the New Jersey Nets (19-26) for the eighth and final playoff spot. Granted, there are still a lot of games left with All-Star weekend taking place Feb. 15 to 17 in New Orleans, so it’s a way too early to take this conversation seriously.
Teams should be required to have a .500 record or better to make the postseason cut. What would the Sixers accomplish by making the playoffs? One word: Nothing. This squad is young, inexperienced and lacks the talent to match-up with the league’s top teams. This is a rebuilding year and, if somehow the Sixers managed to stay in the postseason hunt this spring, they would have no shot of landing a top-10 pick in the draft.
Wins aren’t important. Yes, Philadelphia is in desperate need of one, and the first-place Flyers are filling that role quite nicely. With the Sixers, the next three months should be treated like a probationary period for management to decide who stays and who goes this summer. This includes everyone from coach Maurice Cheeks to first-round pick Thaddeus Young.
Young, Lou Williams and Andre Iguodala are a few players who should be part of the future foundation, but the Sixers still are missing that star attraction. With at least $10 million in cap space available this summer, landing a big-name free-agent shouldn’t be a problem. Factor in a high draft pick and the Sixers can start moving in a winning direction.
Until then, please refrain from that playoff talk.
