The Sixers are serious. After last season’s hecatomb in the playoffs, the airs have changed notably. You breathe much better. Jaylen Brown, Jason Tatum, Kemba Walker and company put the option of a total rebuild on the table for Philadephia. The all or nothing the Simmons-Embiid couple seemed to be coming to an end, but has been met with an extension. Although subsequently shaken by the Harden earthquake, the link is still tightly knit and, now, reinforced by everything that revolves, and happens, around it.
Al Horfod and his contract, Josh Richardson or Glen Robinson III left and Seth Curry, Danny Green or Dwith Howard arrived. On the bench, Brett Brown got up, after seven years, and Doc Rivers sat down, who arrived very questioned after passing through Los Angeles, but more than supported by his extensive career and the 2008 ring, with the Celtics. Behind all this, a recently landed Daryl Morey, but with clear ideas.
It was not a total revolution, but it was a substantial one. And it is hitting the key. Captained by an Embiid who, right now, is running as one of the big favorites for the MVP, the Sixers are leaders of the East, with 71.4% of victories. Considerably above his pursuers. The situation invites optimism. So much so that his own Morey, in statements to the American journalist Stephen A. Smith (ESPN), has assured that the ring is the only thing that the franchise can afford: “In my opinion, this season, either we are champions or we are a failure.” No middle ground. The manager, extremely excited about what he is seeing on the track, considers this campaign as an occasion that they cannot miss: “Doc Rivers has already won a ring. Joel and Ben haven’t had that chance yet. But, you know, I think you do this, go into every season, hoping to win the title, and not many teams do. We do. We definitely have a chance to win and we will continue to work hard for it. We have a very good chance. “ judgment.
The Pennsylvania franchise, which has three rings on its resume, has not joined Larry O’Brien since 1983, when Julius Erving and Moses Malone dared to disrupt the Lakers-Celtics duopoly, the legendary battle between Larry Bird and Magic Johnson. Currently, the franchise has not even been planted in a conference finals for two decades. The last to do so, in 2001, were Allen Iverson and Dikembe Mutombo, directed by Larry Brown. Now, Morey hopes that Joel Embiid and Ben Simmons, under the baton of Doc Rivers, will surpass them … or fall for good.
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