The Philadelphia 76ers are a team desperate for some veteran leadership. The elder statesman on the squad from last season, Luc Mbah a Moute, packed his bags in free agency, leaving a massive void in the locker room for the league’s youngest team.

There is talent in Philadelphia: Nerlens Noel looks like a legitimate defensive force, while No. 3 overall pick from this year’s draft, Jahlil Okafor, put up some impressive numbers during Summer League, but there still is a non-existent backcourt. Last season Sixers fans were shocked to see then-reigning Rookie of the Year Michael Carter-Williams shipped off to Milwaukee only to leave behind a rotating door of D-League and 10-day contracts at the point guard position in his wake.

If the Sixers are going to take the next step and end the tankathon that has been their misfortune for the past two years, the organization should take a long look at Norris Cole.

Cole is one of the few free agents left who not only has NBA experience but has two more rings than anyone else on the Sixers roster. Last year Cole averaged a career-high 9.9 points per game after he was traded to the New Orleans Pelicans from the Miami Heat. Those 9.9 points may not jump off the page at you, but Cole would immediately make the Sixers a better team if he were to take his talents to the city of Brotherly Love.

Cole has always been an intriguing player, as at 6-foot-2, 175 pounds, he’s by no means the biggest guard out there. But the Sixers are one of the NBA’s tallest teams, and Cole would be a fascinating addition to the starting rotation. At 26 years old, Cole has been through more trials and tribulations in the NBA than most, and it would be the intangibles that he could bring the Sixers’ locker room that should make a him targeted asset.

He was a part of the two epic runs to championships and has played alongside some of the world’s greatest players day in and day out. Also, he is fearless in the way he plays the game. No moment seemed to big for him when he was a member of the Heat, and often it was him, not starting point guard Mario Chalmers, who would have the ball in his hands at the end of critical games.

The Sixers are still two or three years away from making any kind of noise in the Eastern Conference, but they will never return to the success they had in the Allen Iverson era unless they first address the same position that AI once played. Cole’s gritty style of play would rub off on the younger players and certainly would make head coach Brett Brown’s job a little easier.

If Philly wants to take a significant step forward this offseason, then the squad should bring in Cole and let him run the show. His numbers have never been an indication of the true talent that he has because he so often was the second or third option on his team. In Philadelphia, it would be all Cole all the time.

Douglas Ammon is an NBA Featured Writer for www.RantSports.com. Who covers all things about the Association, follow him on Twitter @DA76er