Dear Friends,
Free Agency opened up on June 30 at 6 PM for the NBA, and man did shit get crazy. Kemba Walker to the Celtics. Kyrie and KD to the NETS. Russel to the Warriors. JJ Reddick to the Pelicans. Jimmy Butler to the Heat. The Knicks obviously still got bottom of the barrel, but that's all their fault. How do you pick up 3-4 guys that play the same position? Julius Randle was a great pick up, but I still don't think they're going to be going anywhere this year.
I don't want to talk about the Knicks though. I don't want to give them any more attention than they have already gotten due to their poor decisions. Today, I'd like to quickly talk about the Philadelphia 76ers. *Warning* this will come off 100% bias due to me being a big fan of Philly sports teams.
I was definitely worried about the 76ers going into FA time. The only players I was sure we wouldn't lose were Simmons and Embiid. Butler, JJ, and Tobias were up in the air. We ended up trading Jimmy to the Heat for Richardson, and JJ just decided to join Lonzo Ball on the Pelicans *gag*. We did get Tobias Harris back which is a HUGE win right there. He killed in the game last season and was a great asset to the team. Now we have him for the next 5 years for 180 million dollars.
From what I've explained so far, the starting five include Ben Simmons, Josh Richardson, Tobias Harris, and Joel Embiid. That leaves one open spot left. Who better to fill that up than Al Horford?
The previous center for the Celtics joins the Sixers for the next four years for $109 million. That is yet again a HUGE win for Philly. We have probably the tallest starting five there is for next season. All big men, playing well each in their respective positions, killing the game.
Al Horford is a great steal from FA simply because of his skill and ability to stand in for Embiid if he isn't playing a game or is on the bench. He plays well in the paint and can get off a three-pointer if need be. Yeah, he came from Boston which is annoying but who cares? We have AL HORFORD.
This is an offense and defense that is a force to be reckoned with. People should fear the 76ers going into the 19-20 season. They easily are one of the biggest winners coming out of free agency as of right now. Currently, when I am typing this it is July 1st, but time will have passed by the time this is posted. Regardless, Philadelphia has got a great future ahead of them with this potential starting 5 of:
PG - Ben Simmons
SG - Josh Richardson
SF - Tobias Harris
PF - Al Horford
C - Joel Embiid
Just look how beautiful that looks. Yes, it is a shame that we lost JJ to the Pelicans because it is always good to have a sharpshooter like him, but you have to lose some to win some. Personally, I am upset with the loss of Jimmy Butler to the Heat, but with his personality clashing with the others, I think it's not the worst thing in the world. Jimmy is a phenomenal player and he kept us going in the playoffs most of the time. The man is on his own journey though! There is nothing wrong with that. He wants to build his own legacy and I respect that. I know it'll be interesting when the 76ers play the Heat during the new season this upcoming year.
Overall, 76ers came out strong. There are still some great FAs out there waiting to join a team. Hopefully, by now Kwahi has signed with a team (my guess is the Lakers). Maybe the Sixers will get Danny Green? It's a long shot but that's alright with me. I'm happy with where our team is standing now. Warriors definitely still hold West in my opinion, but the 76ers are definitely up there in the East. Especially if Leonard doesn't go back to the Raptors.
