By Sean Kennedy (@PhillyFastBreak)
The dream of two Summer League Championships in two years is dead. The Sixers will not be defending last year’s Orlando Summer League title, as they were eliminated from playoff contention in Vegas Wednesday, losing 75-68 to Brooklyn. Jahlil Okafor did not play, as he was given permission to attend the ESPYs and see Coach K lose the Coach/Manager of the Year award to Steve Kerr. Hopefully, Big Jah worked the room and made some good contacts to help sell Philly as a great destination for whenever the team re-enters the free agency pool in a couple years.
As for the game, it wasn’t pretty, as the Summer Sixers fell behind 23-7 after one quarter and aside from a surge in the third quarter to make things close, never looked in sync with Okafor, JaKarr Sampson, and Jordan McRae all not playing. They’ll play their final summer league game in the consolation bracket Friday afternoon.
Air Tokoto
.@AirPierreTokoto lives up to his username. The proof just aired on @NBATV. » http://t.co/rgBcQHSfoh
— Philadelphia 76ers (@Sixers) July 15, 2015
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Starting in place of JaKarr Sampson, who was a late scratch with a sore back, J.P. Tokoto had his best game of summer league, going 3-3 from the field for 9 points, including a hellacious finish of a Pierre Jackson alley-oop. Still, the former Tar Heel fouled out in just 18 minutes of action (summer league playoffs saw foul limits drop back down to 6 after players got 10 in pool play), showing just how raw his game still is at this point. I’m sure the Sixers will make a hard sell to have Tokoto wind up in Delaware this fall; a spot on the final 15 seems highly unlikely for the second-round pick.
Wilbekin Cools Off
Like Icarus, Scottie Wilbekin flew too close to the sun with his scorching stretch from three the past week, but finally fell back down to earth. The former Gator led the Sixers with 11 points, but shot just 5-15 and 1-7 from three. This performance was more in line with what the Sixers saw from him last year in Orlando, when he couldn’t hit the broad side of a Disney-themed barn. What separates guys who make it in the league from those who continue to pop up in summer leagues is consistency. Even so, I still think Wilbekin has down enough in Vegas to warrant a training camp invite from some NBA team.
2020 NBA Champions?
AUDIO: Dr. J joined @SiriusXMNBA and told us that the #Sixers ownership has a 7 year rebuild plan in place! http://t.co/4ZQLBhbBnz #NBA
— SiriusXM NBA Radio (@SiriusXMNBA) July 15, 2015
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The most interesting bit of Sixers-related news to come out yesterday was Dr. J’s interview on Sirius. According to the good doctor, when ownership first took over, it was related to him that there was a 7-year timeline for a return to true contender status. This is the first time we’ve heard anything about a timeframe on the rebuild since Brett Brown mentioned 5 years when he first started before quickly backing off it. The 7-year mark falls in line with Hinkie’s moves drafting Dario Saric and acquiring the Kings future first-rounder, and the team has certainly never shown a desire for a short-term fix at the expense of the bigger picture. If there’s truth to the 7-year timeline in place, that shows remarkable patience on the part of ownership in an era where one or two years missing the playoffs can be a death knell in some organizations. Let’s hope the long game pays off for the Sixers.
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