By Cameron Moore (7th)

Nothing has gone right for the Philadelphia 76ers this season, and I mean nothing. They finished the regular season 24-58 and failed to make the playoffs. The season took a rock-bottom look back to The Process days of the 2010s. 

It was that bad.

So, without further ado, here’s a full explanation of what went wrong and why there is reason to worry in the City of Brotherly Love.

Let’s start with the elephant in the room: the injury bug hit the Sixers and it hit them hard. 

• Joel Embiid barely played all season and underwent arthroscopic surgery on his left knee.
• Tyrese Maxey missed the last part of the season with a finger injury.
• Eric Gordon underwent a successful mid-season wrist surgery and is likely out for the year.

Yeah. Pretty much the entire starting five and the second rotation of bench guys missed some action. I’m not saying that injuries were the only reason (it wasn’t) but it’s hard to talk about this disaster of a year without bringing up injuries.

But also, who did they play? Kelly Oubre Jr. and Tyrese Maxey played the most total minutes for the 76ers this season. But, who was third, you ask? 

Guerschon Yabusele. He played the third most minutes this year. Ricky Council IV played the fifth-most minutes (???) and Justin Edwards and Quentin Grimes were 6 and 7! Not to say these are nobodys, but this is absurd. 

Primarily, it was because of Embiid and the “Big Three’s” ability to stay healthy. Joel Embiid played 19 games.

In an 82 game season.

Additionally, Tyrese Maxey and Paul George played 52 and 41 games, respectively. These three played less than 20 games together, so they never ended up reaching their potential this season.

Overall, this was a very disappointing season. However, there may still be a small light at the end of the tunnel.

Due to how much the 76ers tanked near the end of the year, they are in a decent spot in the draft lottery, where stakes are high for dominant Duke freshman Cooper Flagg. The Sixers currently have the 5th best odds for the #1 pick, at a 10.5% chance. If you think these odds are low, think again.

The teams with the best odds are the Utah Jazz, the Washington Wizards, and the Charlotte Hornets, at a 14% chance each. And remember this: last year, the Atlanta Hawks jumped from number 10 (3% chance) all the way to number 1. If luck finally goes on the Sixers side, the presence of Flagg could raise on-court performance and season ticket sales (and all ticket sales, in general).

So, yeah. I hate injuries. Let’s hope next year is better.