“There’s no way I am watching the 2014-15 Sixers unless they’re playing my Celtics, or unless someone sends me a text saying that LeBron or Durant has 49 through three quarters against them.”
— Bill Simmons in “The Annual NBA League Pass Rankings Part 1”
You know what I say to that? Good. We don’t need your crummy Celtics juju, anyway, Simmons. (Perhaps that sounds just a wee bit passive/aggressive, but I apologize for nothing.)
The fact of the matter is that it’s true. For many reasons, the 2014-2015 Philadelphia 76ers probably won’t be watched on many League Passes across the United States. The Sixers should be, however, viewed on many televisions in the tri-state area with Comcast SportsNet or on radios on 97.5 The Fanatic.
Rebuilding a team from the bottom is never an easy task, but in the NBA, it’s one that has to be done. In the case of this team, it was all but necessary. General Manager Sam Hinkie has done a brilliant job thus far collecting assets and potential pieces to form this team into something that can be very special down the line.
In the meantime, the Sixers and their fans are in year two of this rebuilding process. Last year was dreadful. There’s no kind of positive spin you can put on that. The 26-game losing streak this team went on was kind of the culmination of how dreadful the season was as a whole. There was a reward: Kansas center Joel Embiid — who may not play this season, but if we all pray hard enough, perhaps it will happen.
Despite all of that, this group will be fun to watch this season, so if you have the ability to watch this team in action either in person (because StubHub tickets for the home opener are as low as $25 last time I checked) or on television, you should.
First and foremost, there’s reigning rookie of the year Michael Carter-Williams. Carter-Williams was probably the most controversial rookie of the year selection in the last decade. He certainly put up the numbers that would warrant an award (16.7 points, 6.6 assists, 6.5 rebounds), but the big argument centered around whether or not you can award such a performance for a player who was on a team that won 19 games last season — an argument that I called “asinine” on this very website when the voting was taking place.
The talent around Carter-Williams hasn’t necessarily improved, so MCW will likely get the bulk of the Sixers shots when he hits the floor. (He’s recovering from shoulder surgery, currently.) Ideally, you wouldn’t want that considering he only shoots 40 percent from the field, but what other choice is there?
Oh, right! Nerlens Noel. We’re finally going to see some regular season Nerlens action! Is it weird to say that I’ve been waiting with baited breath for way too long to be able to be a part of this moment? Noel’s performances in summer league (13.7 points, 5.7 rebounds, 3.0 blocks, and 2.3 steals in three games in Orlando) and preseason have people believing he is every bit as advertised. The double-double he had against the Knicks last week (12 points, 11 rebounds) was impressive — and I’m not even adding the four steals and blocked shot. The athleticism is there, and Noel has all the makings of a prime defensive specialist in the post with his blocking ability and his quick hands.
Now, does Noel make the Sixers a playoff contender? Absolutely not, but his being on the floor definitely makes the team something to watch because you just don’t know what Noel is going to do. You want to make sure you’re in front of the television for that one night where he goes for 25+ points, 10+ rebounds, and 3+ blocks. It’s going to happen this season. It’s just a matter of when.
The same could be said about my personal favorite player on this team — Tony Wroten. As much as I miss having Nick Young (aka “Swaggy P”), I must say that I enjoy Wroten every bit as much. Between his ankle breaking crossovers (which, I’d prefer he finish) or his insane ability to hit three-quarter court shots (he hit two in one week at one point of the season), Wroten is much like Howard Stern in his hay day. You just want to see what he does next.
Tony, Sixers fans just want to see one thing next: the ability to score 14-16 points per game in a fashion where you shoot better than 41 percent from the floor. Knock off trying to hit those threes. It’s not your forte, my friend. Stick to what you do better than most on this team. Get to the rim, finish, repeat. If you get particularly hot, that’s one thing, but it’s not your bread and butter, kid.
Of all the youngsters on this team, I’m pretty sure I’m more excited about K.J. McDaniels more than any of them. The Sixers took McDaniels 32nd in this past draft out of Clemson University, and I immediately did research. The ACC Defensive Player of the Year and First team All-ACC last year is going to see a lot of time playing the two-guard and small forward position this year, and mark my words right now. He’s going to be top-five in the NBA in blocks per game this season. McDaniels is going to have a lot of them. Just bank on it.
No block this preseason was as glorious as his block on Evan Turner, and Derek Bodner of Liberty Ballers gathered this statistic:
Players with more blocks than K.J. McDaniels’ 10 so far this preseason: Andre Drummond and Paul Gasol. That is it. #sixers
— Derek Bodner (@DerekBodnerNBA) October 21, 2014
That’s it! That’s the list!
Sure, it’s only the preseason, but that shows the makings of someone who is going to be very active on defense. Sixers coach Brett Brown has already talked about the possibility of molding McDaniels into something of a Bruce Bowen-type — which could be amazing if McDaniels develops a consistent corner three point shot. The controversy over his contract (one-year guaranteed) shouldn’t worry people too much. If McDaniels proves himself, he’s going to be a piece that’ll be worth keeping around given what the Sixers have coming to the court in the next year or so …
Like Joel Embiid, for instance.
Embiid is recovering from surgery to repair a stress fracture in his foot that he suffered prior to the NCAA Tournament, but if he hits the floor this season (unlikely), it will be a party on Pattison Ave. like Mac Miller’s “Party on Fifth Ave.” Until then, the only thing we can expect from Embiid right now are hilarious tweets and the potential to be an amazing sideline comrade. Up until we see Embiid out of a nice suit, the most we’ll get from him are probably priceless reactions from a nasty crossover or an emphatic dunk.
If Embiid plays this season, I suggest everyone clear their schedule to be able to watch this game. When Embiid, Noel, and Carter-Williams get on the floor together, you’ll see the full building blocks of these young Sixers. This trio has the makings to be something very special in this town, and you’re urged to be there from minute one.
Perhaps Bill Simmons, Zach Lowe, and many of the basketball viewing world outside of the city of Philadelphia won’t be watching much Sixers basketball, but that’s okay. There’s plenty of reasons to watch this team this season. How will the youngsters develop? Will we see Embiid at all this season? What will year two of Michael Carter-Williams look like? These are all questions that true 76ers fans will want answered and ones that will make them tune in.
The season starts next week, so I’ll be watching with Mark Zumoff and Malik Rose on CSN Philadelphia or listening to the great Tom McGinnis on 97.5 The Fanatic. However you pay attention to the Sixers this season, make sure you do so because you don’t want to be the guy at the office who says, “I didn’t see that last night,” when someone asks if you saw that amazing game from (insert Sixers youngster here).
[Photo: Jesse D. Garrabrant/NBAE via Getty Images]Add The Sports Daily to your Google News Feed!
