The Philadelphia 76ers have officially been eliminated from playoff contention. Philly was the last Eastern Conference team eliminated from the race, but quite honestly they didn’t have a chance to make the playoffs anyway. The 31-45 Sixers are six full games behind the eighth seeded Milwaukee Bucks. Milwaukee’s 100-83 Saturday night win over the Toronto Raptors propelled Philadelphia into the NBA Lottery.
The Sixers were last years Cinderella team going into the playoffs as the eighth seed and defeating the number one seeded Chicago Bulls. The Sixers were one win away from playing the Miami Heat in the Eastern Conference Finals before being eliminated by the Celtics in a hotly contested 7-game series.
Things were supposed to be looking up in the City of Brotherly Love with the offseason acquisition of center Andrew Bynum, but the trade for Bynum turned out to be disastrous.
Bynum came into the season on the injured list after undergoing treatments on both knees for arthritis. The former Lakers center famously suffered a setback while bowling in the fall. In mid-March the team announced that Bynum would be out for the year to undergo arthroscopic surgery on both knees.
Andrew Bynum never played a single second for the 76ers, collected his $16 million dollar paycheck, and now he’s heading into the offseason as an unrestricted free agent.
“The team that we tried to put together we’ve never seen,” Sixers Head Coach Doug Collins said in February. “And so I think, when you take a huge piece away from it, your warts show.”
“We made a huge deal. And we have nobody playing as part of that deal. How many teams can give up Andre Iguodala, Moe Harkless and Nik Vucevic, and have nothing in return playing? That’s tough to overcome, right? That’s just the facts. I’m not looking for any out. But that’s the facts.”
The bottom line is losing Andre Iguodala hurt the 76ers. I admittedly thought that Evan Turner was ready to fill-in for Iguodala, I was wrong. Iguodala is leading one of the best teams in the West, the Denver Nuggets, for what will likely be a long playoff run. Nikola Vucevic is averaging 12.6 points, 11.6 rebounds, 1.8 assists, and 1 block per game for the Orlando Magic. Rookie Mo Harkless is also having a solid season for Orlando scoring 8 points a contest.
Having Iguodala, Harkless, and Vucevic on the Sixers roster would have made them a playoff shoe-in once again. Sometimes it’s just best to stand pat.
The injury bug also bit the 76ers in the 2013 season. Newly acquired guard Jason Richardson went down in February with a knee injury. Nick Young and Royal Ivey also missed over twenty games to injury.
Philly has to go into the offseason hoping for some luck in the Lottery. The team will also have about $20 million dollars to play with on the free agent market. That will be more than enticing with players like Dwight Howard, Josh Smith, and Al Jefferson searching for the highest bidder.
Rumors have swirled that Doug Collins is on the hot seat and could be given the boot at seasons end. Sixers General Manager Tony DiLeo would be wise to keep Collins at the helm. The bad Bynum trade and rash of injuries is not Doug Collins’ fault.
Despite a disappointing season things are looking up for the Sixers. Having an All-Star point guard in Jrue Holiday, $20 million dollars in expiring contracts, and a 2013 Lottery pick isn’t all that bad. The key is for the Sixers organization to make all the right decisions and that starts with keeping Doug Collins as their coach.
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