Philadelphia 76ers
Earlier in the off-season, I penned a column about the Philadelphia 76ers and their “pursuit” of nine wins. For the uninitiated, the all-time mark for futility in the NBA is a 9-73 final record, and to be honest, it appears the Sixers general manager Sam Hinkie is gunning for that honor.
He will “succeed” this season.
This is the least talented roster that I can ever recalling seeing in the NBA, and somewhat hilariously, it is far worse than the group that won only 19 games last season. For reference, the 2013-2014 edition employed Thaddeus Young, Evan Turner and Spencer Hawes for a stretch of the season, and this season, the only “veteran” presence would come from second-year point guard Michael Carter-Williams and the seemingly uninterested Jason Richardson.
Philadelphia was easily the worst offensive team in the league last season, averaging just 96.8 points per 100 possessions, and I don’t think that will improve. The aforementioned Carter-Williams is talented, but he is wildly inefficient and currently injured, while the team’s second-best player appears to be rookie Nerlens Noel, who is known for his defense and is currently in the midst of a complete overhaul offensively after his knee surgery.
Players like Tony Wroten, Hollis Thompson, Henry Sims and Casper Ware appear to be prominently involved this season, and there isn’t a casual NBA fan with any recollection of a player on this team outside of Noel and Carter-Williams. I could go on for days about how jarring the lack of talent is on this team, but even if a player like K.J. McDaniels (who I like) emerges in a big way as a rookie, this is easily the worst team in the league.
Projecting a team to be the worst in NBA history is aggressive, but that is where we are.
Projected Record: 8-74, 15th in East