Are The Sixers Legit Title Contenders Or Are They Underachieving?

It’s supposed to be their year.

That’s the sentiment from many around the league in regard to the Philadelphia 76’ers, or at least that was the sentiment—opinions change in the fast-paced NBA.

At 20-10 Philly is just one game better than they were a year ago at this time when the thought was that they were close but not quite ready to be contenders. This year’s iteration has shown flashes of defensive brilliance but their Jekyll and Hyde offensive impactfulness has at times put stress on the defense to be even better.

Leveling up has proven to be difficult for a Sixers team that is trying to move from good to great. Ben Simmons and Joel Embiid are the cornerstone pieces responsible for making that happen on the floor, but Brett Brown has a role to play on the sidelines, as does Elton Brand in the front office.

For all intent and purposes, Brand is the only one living up to expectations with a series of go-for-it now moves. He didn’t allow the Sixers to lose Jimmy Butler for nothing by obtaining Josh Richardson in a complicated four-team trade in the summer. That, in turn, allowed them to retain Tobias Harris and add Embiid’s defensive nemesis Al Horford from rival Boston. He added other contributing fringe parts by drafting Matisse Thybulle and signing Trey Burke and Kyle O’Quinn in free agency in addition to Horford.

Brand had a good summer and the Sixers’ starting lineup is quite possibly the best in the NBA thanks to his ingenuity—at least on paper.

Coach Brown has survived the tanking days to live in a world where there are championship-level expectations of his services. Once viewed as a good coach of a bad team that won just 10 games four seasons ago, he now faces growing whispers questioning if he can lead this team into full glory. Life comes at you fast and the job of an NBA head coach is a thankless one.

Luckily, he continues to have the respect of his players, but rotations and late-game decision making have come into question by those who closely follow the team. As long as he retains the ear of Embiid and Simmons they should be able to block out the noise detractors heave his way.

But the ears of stars are often fickle, placing Brown on a seat he’s not fully aware may be warming.

Take Embiid for instance who has been patient with the organization despite some outbursts about wanting to participate in back-to-backs the last two seasons. His wish has been granted on that front but are the right plays being called for him throughout the course of games?

The two-time All-Star has seen his points, rebounds, assists, blocks, field goal percentage and attempts head south so far during the 2019-2020 campaign. It stands to wonder if Embiid has a MVP-level of play that he can rise to and if so…who or what is holding him back from it?

Simmons seems resolute to let this all keeping happening when the two share the court together. The lack of pick-and-roll of action is a direct result of Simmons’ inability to put pressure on the defense outside of the paint. Simmons takes 90% of his shots from ten feet and in but is shooting just 35% between three and ten feet of the rim. He’s shooting just 23% between the ranges of 10 and 16 feet which basically indicates if it isn’t a dunk or layup, he can’t make it.