What’s Next For Philly?
The Philadelphia 76ers ended the 2022-2023 regular season with the East’s third-best record at 54-28. Joel Embiid became the first Sixer to win the MVP award in decades. And the team was a win away from punching their ticket to the Eastern Conference Finals.
Unfortunately for the Philly faithful, the Sixers now find themselves heading towards another early vacation after blowing a 3-2 series lead in the East semis against the Boston Celtics. In their Game Seven loss against the Celtics, Embiid had a quiet 15-point outing as he shot just 5 for 18 from the field and 0 for 4 from three. Harden was limited to nine points on a disastrous 3-for-11 field goal shooting.
Philadelphia’’s early exit in the 2023 playoffs led to the firing of Head Coach Doc Rivers. In three seasons under Rivers, the Sixers were 154-82 in the regular season, but never reached the Conference Finals come playoff time.
In firing Doc Rivers, a coach who has now lost more Game Sevens than any other coach in NBA history, the Sixers now begin an offseason with more questions than answers.
James Harden’s Future
James Harden averaged 20.3 points, 8.3 assists, and 6.2 rebounds in the 2023 playoffs. He erupted for 42 points in Philly’s Game Four win against Boston but only managed 24 points in the last two games combined in the series.
Harden can pick up a player option for the 2023-2024 season or become an unrestricted free agent next year. Something he’s already indicated he may do as he angles for a long term deal. Even if the Sixers wanted to trade the 2018 MVP, Harden has the right to veto a trade as part of his $68.4M contract.
Rumours have been swirling since December that Harden could be looking at a return to Houston in the near future. While his comments to reporters that he wanted to play for a contender seem to contradict such a move, at the end of the day, money talks. And Houston would be amongst the handful of clubs who wouldn’t mind dolling out a final big money contract to a soon to be 34 year old guard.
Change Inevitable
After losing in the East semifinals, Joel Embiid said, “Me and James (Harden) can’t win alone.” He’s not wrong in his assessment that basketball is a game played by five players. But his comments also rubbed many the wrong way as both his and Harden’s poor performances down the stretch are ultimately what doomed the 76ers in the first place.
With Doc Rivers gone, many observers believe Philly’s front office will attempt to build a better team around Embiid and Harden in hopes of keeping the duo intact for at least one more season.
Aside from Harden, multiple players will be entering the final year of their contracts next season, including Tobias Harris and Tyrese Maxey. With Embiid sounding as if he’s asking for reinforcements, many believe the Sixers will likely listen to offers for Harris, who averaged 15.3 points, 7.3 rebounds, and 1.6 assists in the 2023 playoffs.
Meanwhile, Maxey was the Sixers’ second-leading scorer in the playoffs- averaging 20.3 points along with 4.1 rebounds, 2.3 assists, and 1.4 steals per game. Rumours of the club targeting Portland guard Damian Lillard continue to persist, however that will likely need to wait until after the 2023 NBA Draft takes place.
Currently sitting with the 3rd overall pick, if Portland is able to select NBA G-League guard Scoot Henderson to pair alongside sophomore Shaedon Sharpe, they may be more willing to listen to trade offers over the summer.
First things first though, the Sixers will have to decide who will replace Doc Rivers at the helm as it will dictate which path the team takes in the offseason. With Nick Nurse, Monty Williams, and Sam Cassell all reportedly on the short list of potential replacements, the Sixers front office certainly has options to choose from.
-Iggy Gonzales
Photo: Erik Drost. This file is licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution 2.0 Generic license.