NBA: The Sixers in front of the Free Ageny- The Time is now

The Philadelphia 76ers are facing a big summer. The team from the city of fraternal love has plenty of room for this free agency and will go on the hunt for a star. What do they do – and what are the chances of superstars like LeBron James or Kawhi Leonard?

“It’s no secret. The time has come.”

Unusually offensively revealed Sixers coach (and interim GM) Brett Brown after the draft the goals of the franchise. It’s supposed to be a real star after the Sixers knocked hard on the door to the Eastern Conference Finals last season with the core of Ben Simmons, Joel Embiid and Dario Saric, even though they finally lost 1-4 in the Boston Celtics.

“We’ll be aggressive and I hope we’ll be smart about it,” Brown added. The draft at least suggests that Philly has a clear goal and will not conduct any kamikaze actions that will harm the franchise in the future.

It was quite surprising what a smart deal Brown made with the Phoenix Suns as a completely inexperienced GM, even if it came along with a slight taste. At number 10, as expected, the Sixers chose Hometown Kid Mikal Bridges, who as a 3 and D role-playing player would certainly have fitted in well with the Sixers’ concept.

Bridges was as happy as a snow king, since his mother also works for the franchise. Euphorically, the two-time NCAA champion already gave interviews with Villanova, while suddenly it trickled through that Philly had already traded the forward to Phoenix. In return, the Sixers received the No.16 pick (Zhaire Smith) and a bare and completely unprotected first-round pick (via Miami) in 2021.

A real steal for Philly for several reasons. On the one hand there is the fact that the pick is not subject to any protection and Miami could actually be a lottery team with regard to their roster at this point in time. The 2021 draft could also become a special one. There are rumours that One-and-Done will be abolished soon and would be the first Reformed draft in 2021. This means that the best freshmen and the top prospects from high school would be available in a draft class.

Whether this will actually happen is in the stars, but only this possibility gives this Miami pick a high value, also for a trade. Other teams will think similarly and like to have this option in a possible package when Philly asks for a star (Kawhi Leonard and the Spurs?).

And then there’s the obvious: First round picks get guaranteed contracts, for the 16th pick this would be a cap hit of 2,589,480 dollars. For comparison: For the 10th pick Philly would have had to calculate exactly 3,522,480 dollars, so the Sixers save 933,000 dollars in Capspace with the Free Agency on the doorstep.

At first glance, of course, these are blobs, but every cent the Sixers can save to actually free the approximately 35.35 million dollars needed to sign a LeBron James for a Max contract counts. At the moment these are estimates, however, only during the moratorium will the league have calculated the exact salary cap for the season.

The fact that the Sixers triggered a small family drama through the trade was cold, but also the best thing for the franchise. Danny Ainge of the Boston Celtics couldn’t have been prouder. “From a human point of view, of course, it wasn’t pretty,” Brown admitted. “But this was an important step for our franchise development. It’s always about what’s best for the organization and how to win a championship.”

Page 1: The Sixers’ ingenious trade on draft night

Page 2: How do the Sixers make room for LeBron James?

Page 3: Other possible Sixers targets: Kawhi Leonard and Paul George

Page 4: What is the role of the Colangelo Gate? Does Philly need another star?