The Los Angeles Lakers And Philadelphia 76ers Are Building Optimism

Thanks to trusting the process, the Los Angeles Lakers and Philadelphia 76ers are building optimism through taking small steps

Last year, there was an almost-beautiful symmetry between the Los Angeles Lakers and the Philadelphia 76ers. These two teams led the annual race to the bottom, competing for the worst record and the high draft pick that would come with it.

Now, there’s still a symmetry there, but one that isn’t quite as striking. Today, each team’s trajectory is a little different. Make no mistake — these teams are still really bad. But now, after the start of the season, the Lakers and Sixers both have tangible reasons for optimism.

Fresh off two utterly horrific seasons, each team looked much better on opening day in 2016 than in 2015. Neither team should eclipse 30 wins, but just putting a better product on the court is a victory for each franchise at this point.

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For the Los Angeles Lakers, Luke Walton is an unbelievable upgrade at head coach. Add free agents Luol Deng and Timfey Mozgov to the mix, and this team is clearly much better than last year’s version. Kobe Bryant’s departure (despite his immense accomplishments) allows the team to fully commit to developing its young talent, and D’Angelo Russell and Brandon Ingram provide tangible reasons to watch this team immediately.

This was all on display when the Lakers beat the Rockets in their first game. Nobody should ever draw huge conclusions from just one game, but beating a high-scoring Houston team shows that Los Angeles is not quite as lost as it has been in recent memory.

For Philadelphia, the biggest reason for success comes in the form of Joel Embiid. Embiid is a monster, and played well enough to severely threaten Oklahoma City on Philly’s opening night.

Again, one night means almost nothing in the context of an 82-game season, but seeing Embiid play well serves as a reminder that there is actual NBA talent on Philadelphia’s roster.

It’s wise to temper expectations. Neither one of these teams has even a remote change at making the playoffs, and that shouldn’t be the goal in any case. Philadelphia and Los Angeles are both rebuilding, and will finish near the bottom of the standings again.

Even though they’re still years away from being “good,” both of these teams are on the right track though, and they’re both improving.

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Walton is a solid head coach, Embiid is a fantastic player, and the future (though not the immediate future) is filled with optimism for each team.

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