The 76ers, who ended the season last year 14th seed, drafted Joel Embid, Ben Simmons, and Markelle Fultz in hopes that they can help lead the 76ers to the championships in the future.
Here at Bucks, there is a rather small but dedicated fan base for the NBA, with the opinions of students varying.
Qhyle Elijah, 22, said his concerns, explaining, “I’m not so sure about Fultz because he hasn’t really played yet. Ben Simmons Joel Embid were both good in college so I’m assuming that they will be good in the NBA as well. I don’t think they will make the playoffs this year because they still aren’t a good team yet. I think they will be around 9th or 10th seed.”
Corinthian Rivera, a cinema photography major, gave his opinion on the Sixers rookie Markelle Fultz, saying, “personally I don’t really focus on Markelle that much because to me he really isn’t a star player. He might have the potential because he is in the NBA but I don’t know if he can make a name for himself. Joel Embid is alright, I need to see more from him and Ben Simmons same thing. Sixers need to get there game up because I don’t see them going to the playoffs at all. With all these overpowered teams, I don’t think Sixers have a shot. But I will say that these super teams will help the young guys develop faster and better because they must work harder to have a chance. It will take them years to be a great team again.”
Other students had more optimistic outlooks on the upcoming season, despite the pitfalls of the past.
18-year-old Andrew Fratangeli spoke his thoughts about the Sixers and there off season moves. Fratangeli said, “Markelle is a good fit for the Sixers and will benefit playing for them. Also, I think he can be an all-star in the future. Joel Embid will have his break out year. They will give him more minutes so he will be able to show what he can do. If they don’t over use him then I think he will stay healthy. Same with Ben Simmons. I think Ben will go off this year, he did a lot of training with Lebron this summer and the last one so I think he is going to snap. I still don’t think we can make the playoffs. There’s a chance but I don’t know because there are a lot of super teams.”
Colin Cooney, 18, felt very positive about the new team, saying, “I feel Markelle is going to be a good player for the Sixers. I think he will be an average player for his first year then after a while he will grow and live up to his full potential. I think Ben Simmons and Joel Embid will both go off this year and play like all-stars. I don’t think they will make the playoffs this year maybe next year they will even though the east is weaker this year. Adding J.J Reddick was great he is going to be a great fit for them and will give Ben Simmons easy assist.”
Perhaps in the future, there is hope for the 76ers to regain momentum on the basketball court and shoot higher.