![]() Philadelphia also got back its 2017 first-rounder, surrendered in the disastrous trade that made Andrew Bynum a Sixer. Hinkie doubled-down 2014 draft, selecting talented, but injury-prone center Joel Embiid (out for the season with a foot injury, and he has a history of back trouble) and intriguing European big man Dario Saric, whose three-year contract with his Turkish club does not contain an out clause for at least the first two seasons. If the 2013 draft were to be done over, he would certainly be chosen first overall. ![]() Meanwhile, Antetokounmpo ranks in the top 20 among NBA guards in total win shares - at the age of 20, he is the youngest player on this list by at least two years. Noel, essentially a rookie after sitting out the entire 2013–14 season, has shown flashes of promises, but Carter-Williams has taken a giant step backward after starting the season late due to injury. The results so far this season make it closer than you might expect. So, which team made out better in the long-term? 15 pick on Antetokounmpo, while trading veteran point guard Brandon Jennings for Knight and Middleton later in the month. 11) on Michael Carter-Williams, who went on to win the NBA Rookie of the Year Award. The Sixers began their tanking experiment on the evening of the 2013 NBA Draft, trading All-Star point guard Jrue Holiday for injured college forward Nerlens Noel, who was with the No. Regardless of intent, however, we can only judge these teams now by the young pieces they've been able to add as a result of their ineptitude. The difference is that the former did it willingly and purposefully, while the latter did so accidentally. Mayo has rediscovered his game, Sanders (and even Illyasova to a certain extent) have contributed, free agent acquisition Jerryd Bayless has been a sneaky-good pickup, and the defense has jumped from dead last in the league in defensive efficiency to ninth this year.įrom a tanking perspective, both Philadelphia and Milwaukee tanked their 2013–14 seasons. A new ownership group brought in controversial head coach Jason Kidd, and suddenly everything that went wrong last season is coming up roses. This season has seen a complete turnaround, at least in Milwaukee. The Sixers tried valiently (?) to finish the year with the most losses - going so far as to tie the all-time record for consecutive defeats in a season - yet they couldn’t quite catch the runaway dumpster fire that was the Bucks. Philly began the 2013–14 season with a string of improbable victories, leading GM Sam Hinkie to dump his few remaining veterans at the trade deadline. Worse yet, they finished behind a Sixers franchise that was actively trying to lose. Those veteran busts, combined with the team’s failed long-term commitments to Larry Sanders (injuries, unwavering belief in marijuana) and Ersan Illyasova (sudden crappiness), led to a 15–67 record, worst in franchise history. ![]() And when you look carefully at Milwaukee’s developing roster, they might not have to. The real question, both for Milwaukee and teams like it, is this: To tank or not to tank?Ĭontrary to popular wisdom - the school of thought that believes NBA teams must either (realistically) vie for championships or do whatever it takes to land a high lottery pick in the draft - the Bucks, come what may, should not tank. Not surprisingly, the Bucks were spanked by two far superior teams (Toronto, Washington) in their next two games, so let’s put aside any postseason talk for a moment. It was then that the young Bucks took advantage of those winded Brooklyn geezers, pulling out a 122–118 victory and improving their record to 7–5. ![]() Not only did Antetokounmpo stay in the game, though, he also played a critical role in stopping Nets star Joe Johnson from winning the game, forcing a third overtime. In a perfect tanking world, the little tanking devil perched on management’s shoulder should have been screaming, “Take him out! Let him rest for a month or three!” If you needed proof, watch the second overtime period of the aforementioned Bucks’ tilt against the Nets - in which Giannis Antetokounmpo, one of Milwaukee’s future stars, went down with an ankle injury.
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