http://www.philly.com/philly/sports/sixers/20120717_Sixers_thrift-store_bargains_could_turn_to_gold_next_season.html

I have to say Phil Sheridan impressed me here. While the article is blatant front office homerism for the Sixers (no surprise there) what impressed me is that Sheridan actually made a logical argument. The Sixers aren't collecting players they think will help them win a championship right now, and they are doing it for a reason. To put themselves back in position to do so.

When you look at the Sixers from really the Iverson era until now, the one thing that really stands out is the truly awful contracts the Sixers have signed, not necessarily because the player was bad, but because the player simply wasn't capable of performing up to those standards. Derrick Coleman. Chris Webber. Glenn Robinson. Elton Brand. the list goes on. The Philly max has been nice for a lot of over the hill, done players. Now, with the team they have, every player is paid essentially according to his skill or somewhere reasonably close to it. If the Sixers want to dump salary for a big signing, they can do it. Its been years since they've had that flexibility.

While many fans feel frustrated that team isn't planing on outright tanking, take solace in the fact that we probably still won't make the playoffs. Several teams in the eastern conference were simply already better than us, or just got better. While I expect the team to be more watchable due to a lack of Elton Brand and Jodie Meeks (but sadly missing the Boss), I just don't see a path to beating Miami, Chicago, Indiana, Boston, New York, Cleveland, Atlanta, or Brooklyn. The Sixers will suck next year, but the year after, we will have a lottery pick and a ton of flexibility and easily disposed of contracts. Based on who we can sign and who we can draft, we can trade whatever players we have. While you may not trust the front office to play the game properly (and I don't blame you), at least they do seem to be thinking about their moves for once.