Why the Philadelphia 76ers could be a big disappointment in 2021-22

The Philadelphia 76ers haven’t had a productive offseason.

Coming off a second-round playoff exit as the No. 1 seed in the Eastern Conference, it’s hard to see how the 2021-22 NBA season could end up being a bigger disappointment for the Philadelphia 76ers.

However, as training camps quickly close in, there’s a growing thought that the Sixers could be set up for failure ahead of the new season.

And while there are a few reasons why I believe the Sixers could be in for a difficult season, the first revolves around their inactivity during the offseason. Of course, the offseason technically isn’t over, but it’s hard to envision any move that the Sixers could make at this point that would dramatically improve their chances next season.

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Including trading Ben Simmons, which would likely only make the roster less top-heavy and add more all-around depth (best-case scenario).

The Philadelphia 76ers have set themselves up for failure

The fact that it’s already nearly September, one month away from the start of training camps, and they have no resolution on the Simmons situation is quite concerning. With every passing day, it’s looking more and more as if the Sixers are willing to enter camp with Simmons still on the roster.

That will only open a bigger can of worms and perhaps making way for the nightmare scenario in which Simmons refuses to show up to camp. Not to say that will happen, but it’s at the very least on the table at this point.

Simmons aside, there are still big questions about the rest of this roster. The Sixers made three “big” moves this offseason.

First, they drafted Jaden Springer, an intriguing prospect in the 2021 NBA Draft. He’s another young prospect that the team could groom in their developmental system, though it’s unlikely that he’ll contribute much, if at all, this season.

Secondly, the team signed Andre Drummond in free agency. In a vacuum, he’s going to be a great backup for Joel Embiid but it’s not too encouraging that he was run off the court by the Phoenix Suns in the first round of the playoffs last year.

He’ll certainly help in the regular season but there’s at least a chance he might be useless once the playoffs begin.

And thirdly, the Sixers signed Embiid to a huge contract extension that will keep him with the team for the foreseeable future. That’s it. After that, the Sixers still haven’t made any moves to shore up the rest of their rotation.

While you can say that wasn’t necessarily needed, it sure didn’t look that way when the Atlanta Hawks were having their way with the Sixers in the playoffs.

Additionally, nearly every other Eastern Conference team managed to improve this offseason as the Sixers continue to be caught up in a game of chicken with Simmons.

The Brooklyn Nets regained health and added Patty Mills. The New York Knicks added depth and a legit starting point guard in Kemba Walker. The Atlanta Hawks’ young core is only going to get better and might’ve drafted the steal of the 2021 class in Jalen Johnson.

The Miami Heat revamped their roster around Jimmy Butler and Bam Adebayo by acquiring Kyle Lowry, PJ Tucker, and Markieff Morris. The Boston Celtics signed Dennis Schroder and added Josh Richardson and Al Horford via trade. And the Milwaukee Bucks, well they’re the defending champs.

Nearly every playoff team from last year has managed to improve the roster in one aspect or another and is expected to be a better version of themselves this season. The Sixers, I’m not sure that can be said.

The Sixers needed this offseason to figure things out with Simmons, improve the roster where it needed, and find a way to catch up to the rest of the East contenders. I’m not sure they accomplished any of that this offseason. Because of that, there’s a good chance that they’re a big disappointment in 2021-22.