NBA Philadelphia 76ersSan Antonio Spurs

San Antonio Spurs Are Where Philadelphia 76ers Want to Be

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By @papreps

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Soobum Im-USA TODAY Sports

In a physical sense, the Philadelphia 76ers have finally reached their Manifest Destiny as an organization. They are where they want to be, with the San Antonio Spurs in the AT&T Center.

In a metaphysical sense, though, the 100-75 loss to the Spurs on Monday night showed how far they need to go. What the Sixers have done is roll the dice and hope seven and 11 show up. They have loaded the dice more than other teams by stockpiling high draft choices, but to really get to where the Spurs are, the Sixers will need much more than luck.

They’ll need about three years and then they will know. That will give them the time to decide which big man to keep and which to unload for additional assets. Chances are that both Nerlens Noel and Joel Embiid become NBA stars, but having two 7-foot centers with similar skill sets will be counterproductive.

To be really a good team, the Sixers will have to emulate Spurs and develop a team with complementary parts—say, a center (either Noel or Embiid), a power forward, a small forward, a shooting guard and a point guard.They seem to have three of the pieces, if not already in place, then around in the injured Embiid, Dario Saric, the player they have stashed away in Turkey for the next two years as a center and a forward, and Michael Carter-Williams, who came off the bench to score 16 points on Monday night.

Right now, they need to find a small forward and a knock-down shooting guard with the picks they have stockpiled. If they do, they will look very much like the Spurs. If not, they will look like something in between what they are now and where they want to be.

It’s a big gamble, but one worth taking to avoid mediocrity.

Mike Gibson is a writer for www.RantSports.com. Follow him on Twitter @papreps , “Like” him on Facebook or add him to your network on Google.

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