Dave Uram
This past Saturday was like a big punch in the gut.
The 117-109 victory over Hassan Whiteside and the Miami Heat was oh so sweet, but overshadowed greatly by the constant dishonesty and insults fired off by those running the Philadelphia 76ers.
I’ve said on several occasions via multiple platforms, watching the Sixers is fun again and this is a very likable team. Between the talent and personality of Joel Embiid, scrappiness of Dario Saric, heart of TJ McConnell, defense of Robert Covington, professionalism of Ersan Ilyasova, hustle of Nerlens Noel, intrigue of Ben Simmons and coaching of Brett Brown, there’s no question the future is extraordinarily bright with the Sixers in terms of personnel.
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In fact, since the Eagles have many positions to fix, the Flyers are mediocre and boring and the Phillies have no identity, the 76ers own the biggest upside in the city with the best chance to be great for a long time.
However, that excitement is quickly doused with water by the suits running the Sixers, Bryan Colangelo and Joshua Harris for enabling Colangelo to maintain a Sam Hinkie-Like approach.
On Friday, Colangelo graciously went on 94 WIP and said Embiid’s knee bruise isn’t significant but he continues to sit until he’s asymptomatic.
Then late Friday night and early Saturday morning, video surfaced of Embiid dancing on stage at Meek Mill’s concert.
That was followed by a report from Derek Bodner of SOMEONE-SHOULD-HIRE-HIM-NOW.COM, that Embiid has also been dealing with a minor meniscus tear, which Colangelo ironically followed that up with an impromptu media session to in fact reveal, yes, Embiid suffered a partial meniscal tear when he bruised his knee against the Portland Trailblazers on January 20.
A Sixers win over a team that reeled off 13 straight was irrelevant because the 76ers lied again.
Since this past Saturday, their rationale behind not revealing the minor meniscus tear was because of the word “minor.” They continue to claim Embiid’s extended absence is because of the knee contusion.
Either way, it’s harder to like this team if they’re run by dishonest people. That will only upset fans and give the organization a bad image that it doesn’t need when trying to attract free agents. Not to mention, the handling of the Jahlil Okafor situation appears to be a giant mess as well, signaling dysfunction, which is another eye sore the franchise gave it self.
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When will the Hinkie-ism end?
If the Sixers front office makes poor decisions regarding the fan base, they’ll make bad choices when it comes to drafting, free agency and trades.
Ed Wade put together a great Phillies nucleus in the early 2000s, but Pat Gillick put them over the top by filling the pieces surrounding that talent. Asset acquisition isn’t enough to get the job done.
Don’t be mistaken, I’m not naive. I know it’s hard to believe, but I understand winning cures all and winning championships definitely cures all.
However, do you see the Sixers winning with Harris and Colangelo running the ship? If you ask yourself one question, ask yourself that because if the 76ers stay healthy, they will be elite and the talk of the town. Yet, if the way they’re managed doesn’t change drastically, you can forget about it.
Dave Uram is a weekly contributor to Philly Influencer. You can follow him on Twitter (@MrUram) and email him at [email protected].