Fansided

Philadelphia 76ers in great shape with the salary cap

By Andrew Melnick

Apr 12, 2014; Charlotte, NC, USA; Philadelphia 76ers head coach Brett Brown talks with guard Michael Carter-Williams (1) during the second half against the Charlotte Bobcats at Time Warner Cable Arena. The Bobcats defeated the 76ers 111-105. Mandatory Credit: Jeremy Brevard-USA TODAY Sports
Apr 12, 2014; Charlotte, NC, USA; Philadelphia 76ers head coach Brett Brown talks with guard Michael Carter-Williams (1) during the second half against the Charlotte Bobcats at Time Warner Cable Arena. The Bobcats defeated the 76ers 111-105. Mandatory Credit: Jeremy Brevard-USA TODAY Sports /
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The Philadelphia 76ers’ record of 19-63 may not have been the worst in the league (that honor belonged to the 15-67 Milwaukee Bucks) but after trading away several veterans, they took tanking to a new level, losing 26 games at one point. This offseason, they traded away forward Thaddeus Young to acquire more young talent and although Nerlens Noel will make his debut after missing the entire 2013-2014 with a torn ACL, things could be just as bad, if not worse for the 76ers this season. They will be without the third-overall pick of this year’s draft, Joel Embiid, for at least part of the season and won’t have their other lottery pick, Dario Šarić, at all (he will play in Europe for another year).

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However, the 76ers have acquired a lot of young talent and could be in in great shape in the future.

Eric Pincus of Basketball Insiders points out, the 76ers are also in great shape with the salary cap.

"The Sixers are going all-in on the rebuild, trading away their quality veterans while adding on high potential players like injured center Joel Embiid, second-year rookie Nerlens Noel (finally healthy) and draft pick Dario Saric (who will come to the NBA in a year or two). In the meantime, the team’s highest paid player is Jason Richardson at $6.6 million. Philadelphia has just eight players locked in with seven on non-guaranteed deals (injured Pierre Jackson is likely to get cut with a $400k guarantee). The 76ers can get as far as $31.8 million under the cap, and will certainly look to make deals this season offering to facilitate salary dumps for draft considerations. Even with the 15 players the team has under contract, Philadelphia would only have just $34.5 million on their books, $22.3 million under league minimum of $56.8 million. If the team doesn’t hit that mark, the shortfall will be distributed to the players under contract. In other words, Philadelphia can add $22.3 million in salary that they’re obligated to pay regardless. Look for every general manager looking to get out of a contract to have the 76ers on speed dial. Should the Sixers somehow climb to the cap, the team will receive the $2.7 million Room Exception."

If the 76ers’ young talent continues to pan out, they could convince a talented player to join them and speed up their rebuilding process. Of course, that doesn’t appear to be the plan right now.

Be sure to check FanSided’s official NBA page to keep up to date on the latest news and rumors from around the league all summer long.

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