30 biggest questions for the 2017-18 NBA season

27. Is the Process ready to make Progress?

Yes, but only because they’ll make progress by just stepping on the court. The real question is, how much progress will they make?

Depending on who you listen to, the Philadelphia 76ers are sneaky mid-tier playoff team, a likely bottom-tier playoff team, or too young to be a threat. Don’t listen to those people. Listen to me. I’m telling you that the Sixers will be a basketball team with talented young men in the NBA’s Eastern Conference.

Those talented young men include Ben Simmons, Joel Embiid, Markelle Fultz, Dario Saric, and Jahlol Okafor. All five of them are 32-years-old or young, four of them were top-three draft picks, three of them have played in an NBA game, two have not, and one will get traded.

The best-case scenario for the Sixers is that Simmons, Embiid, and Fultz play at least 65 games each. Wins and losses don’t matter. Winning is better, but losers are more lovable so it’s an even trade off. Staying healthy and just playing basketball is what matters.

It’s impossible to go from the Process to Progress without playing. The 76ers are like a video game. You can’t reach the final stage and rescue the Princess if you’re not playing. You may run through every level with ease or you curse at yourself when you accidentally run into a goomba, but as long as you’re playing, you’re one step closer to defeating Bowser.

The only way you can’t defeat Bowser is if you’re sitting on the bench in a nice suit, live tweeting the game.