Philly Front Office

Let’s go back in time to the day two franchises died: April 28, 2012. This was Game 1 of the first-round playoff series pitting the #1 seed Bulls vs the #8 seed Sixers. series. This was the day that reigning MVP Derrick Rose tore his ACL late in the game and was lost not only for the series, but most of the next two seasons as well. For Rose, his career was never the same again. For the Sixers, they may have lost the game, but the path to winning the series opened up dramatically as Chicago lost it’s best player and team icon. This was the start of a dreadful 12-month period that saw a mediocre team gut itself and completely collapse after inexplicably believing that beating a good team when it’s down makes you better.

As if the Rose loss wasn’t bad enough, Joakim Noah was lost for the series in Game 3. By Game 6, the fully healthy Sixers were up 3 games to 2 on an outmanned Bulls team. This was the lockout shortened season that saw the Bulls go 50-16 behind Rose, Noah, and a great defense. The Sixers were 35-31 with a squad full of Robins with no Batman. With 25 seconds left in a back-and-forth affair, Omar Asik made a dunk to go up 78-75 making a Game 7 back in Chicago look all but inevitable. However, Thad Young brought the Sixers to within 1 on a pass from Jrue Holiday with 12 seconds left followed by Asik getting fouled and bricking BOTH free throws with 7 seconds left! Asik fouled Andre Iguodala who nailed both his free throws to give the Sixers a completely improbable series win. It was the worst thing that could have happened.

The Sixers faced the Celtics the next round, ultimately losing in a very close 7 games. The result of this unlikely mini-run? Sixers new ownership thought they were close, just a player away, from contention. James Harden was traded that summer, but not to the Sixers. Instead, it was Andrew Bynum coming from the Lakers while the Sixers sent out Iguodala, Moe Harkless, Nikola Vucevic, and a first round pick. Just as Derek Rose wouldn’t play the entire next season for the Bulls, Bynum never played a minute for the Sixers.

Obviously, the worst part of this trade was that Andrew Bynum was hurt when the trade was made and the Sixers decided health was a risk they were willing to take (along with Bynum very obviously hating basketball). However, this ignores that to make the trade, the team detonated what made it special. All those Robins needed a Batman, but even at full health, a good NBA Batman needs a bunch of Robins. The Sixers screwed that up by trading away Iguodala and Vucevic. Iguodala ended up playing one season in Denver before moving to the Warriors where he would end up winning 4 championships as the best Robin possible. Hell, he even won a Finals MVP.

Of course, this led to Sam Hinkie and the Process, but so much lost time with the Sixers as well. As for the Bulls, Rose would play 10 games over the next two years and was never again close to the MVP he was before the injury. The once franchise cornerstone was out of Chicago by age 27. The Bulls have only won 2 playoff series since this game and have been mired in mediocrity. The Sixers can’t claim much more success themselves. Despite all the change, and the tanking, and the draft picks, and the trades, and the free agents, they haven’t advanced any further than this rag tag bunch of Robins did 14 years ago.

Chicago Bulls: 14-15, 10 seed in the East

August 12, 2020 might be the most important inauspicious day in Sixers history. Yes, the Sixers lost that day in the Bubble to Toronto, but this has nothing to do with them. Of course (duh), we are talking about the day the Oklahoma City Thunder played the Miami Heat and former Sixer Mike Muscala became a legend.

Flash back to November 1, 2016. The Thunder traded a future 2020 1st round pick to the Sixers along with Ersan Ilyasova for Jerami Grant. The next offseason, dingus Sixers GM Bryan Colangelo traded that pick along with a 2020 2nd round pick to the Orlando Magic in order to draft Euro-Nobody Anzejs Pasecniks who would never play a minute for the Sixers. Orlando then traded the pick back to the Sixers with Jonathan Simmons and a 2019 2nd for sad-boy Markelle Fultz.

One thing I forgot to mention, the original pick was Top 20 protected in 2020 and would become 2nd round picks in 2022 and 2023 if it did not convey. When the Sixers originally made the Jerami Grant trade, this was still the Russell Westbrook Thunder we were talking about and a year before they would acquire Paul George. By the time the Sixers got the pick back though, the Thunder had traded George for pre-MVP Shai Gilgeous-Alexander and were not expected to be very good. We assumed we had received basically nothing for former #1 pick Fultz.

Strange thing happened before the Bubble though, the Thunder were pretty good. Not great, but good enough to keep us all interested. By the time the team got to the Disney complex, they were in contention for a playoff spot. Entering the second to last game of the season, they were 43-27, good for the 21st best record in the NBA a half game behind the Heat and pretty damn close to a pack within a game including the Pacers, Jazz, and Sixers. A win for the Thunder meant the Sixers would get the pick. The funny thing is, the Thunder and Heat had already clinched the playoffs at this point. The game essentially meant nothing.

The meaningless game came down to the end with the Heat up 3 late in the 4th quarter. Then Mike Muscala happened. He hit a 3 to tie the game, the Heat got a 2, then he hit another 3 with 5 seconds left to win it. When the season ended, the Heat had the 20th worst record while the Thunder had the 21st. The pick would go to the Sixers.

Big fucking deal, right? So, we get the 21st pick, that’s not even that valuable. This was the Anthony Edwards draft. He went #1, LaMelo Ball went #3, and the Golden State Warriors selected James Wiseman at #2. Damn. Tyrese Haliburton went #12. The Sixers originally had the #19 pick, but lost it in the Tobias Harris trade. The Nets selected Villanova SF Saddiq Bey. At #20, the Heat selected Precious Achiuwa. Five point guards were already selected by the time the Sixers were on the clock.

Well, this being the Bubble year, remember that the NCAA tournament was cancelled due to Covid. This mean college players did not get the national stage to showcase their talents and big game chops. The Kentucky Wildcats that season went 25-6 and were led by sophomore Immanuel Quickley. They also had small freshman guard Tyrese Maxey who averaged an unassuming 14 and 3 that season on .292 3 point shooting. Despite the stats, the Sixers took him anyway. Our hopes were not high.

Well, we were all REALLY wrong. Maxey is now an MVP candidate and elite 3-point shooter. The word has always been that if he had played in the tournament, everyone would have seen how good he really was and would have never been available. If there is anything selfishly good to come from Covid, it was this…and of course Mike Muscala.

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