There’s no question that the Philadelphia 76ers are in the first year of a full-fledged rebuilding situation, with the franchise essentially starting from scratch. They have a new GM in Sam Hinkie, and didn’t even bother to hire a new head coach in Brett Brown until August -- well after the draft had already taken place.
It isn’t about the upcoming season in Philadelphia; it’s about laying the foundation for a successful NBA franchise to thrive upon in the future. A big part of that obviously involves personnel, and with the Sixers opting to make the draft night deal that sent All-Star guard Jrue Holiday out of town in exchange for the injured and unproven Nerlens Noel, it’s no wonder that other more tenured players on the roster feared that their time in Philly may be running short.
From Jason Wolf of USA Today:Evan Turner was preparing to be traded this offseason after the Philadelphia 76ers dealt his good friend, All-Star point guard Jrue Holiday, to the New Orleans Pelicans for injured teenage center Nerlens Noel and a first-round draft pick in 2014.
“I was getting ready for it,” Turner said on the eve of training camp. ...
“I definitely want to keep getting better and keep shooting better, but I’m not going to dwell on 14, 7 and 5,” Turner said, rounding his statistics up. “So, I mean, I don’t know what else you want me to say. You throw somebody else in that situation and do that. … If things would have gone better we probably would have won some more games. I’ll take responsibility for that. But I’m not going to get chastised for 14, 7 and 5. Somebody hasn’t done that in a while. I’m going to keep getting better and keep developing … but I’m not going to get beat down over what occurred last year.
Turner’s actual numbers from a season ago were averages of 13.3 points, 6.3 rebounds, and 4.3 assists per game. According to Basketball Reference, only LeBron James, Kevin Durant, and Paul Pierce exceeded those numbers last season.
It’s a selective group to be in, obviously, but let’s not get crazy -- Turner’s points per game average and shooting percentage were by far the lowest, and it wasn’t really even close.
Turner could be a nice role player on a team that’s going somewhere. But it’s tough to gauge his value in relation to this current Sixers squad.
