Long gone are the days when the Philadelphia 76ers relied on unproven young players to develop out on the floor in an intentional way to lose and stockpile assets for the future. Now, the Sixers are legitimate contenders and they have a proven core in place for them to make a serious title run.
That does not mean that thoughts of development and thinking for the future is out of their minds and that is where the G League comes in.
Young players Zhaire Smith, Marial Shayok, Jonah Bolden, and others are getting critical playing time needed with the Delaware Blue Coats to further move their careers forward. In the past, those guys would be up playing for the Sixers and getting some serious minutes like T.J. McConnell, JaKarr Sampson, Hollis Thompson, and others in past year’s.
“The world has changed from T.J.’s, and JaKarr’s, and Hollis’ days to now,” said coach Brett Brown. “So with Marial or Shake or Norvel, those guys would have ‘played played’ five years ago and it’s a good snapshot of how the G League, in my opinion, should be used.”
The Blue Coats are led by Connor Johnson at head coach and he runs exactly what Brown runs up in Philadelphia. Delaware has done a good job of developing prospects like Shake Milton in the past and, more recently, Norvel Pelle who was called into action on Friday against the New York Knicks with the Sixers undermanned and he had four blocks off the bench in good minutes.
“The proximity that we have to Delaware and the closeness of our coaching staffs connect the dots quite well and Norvel’s performance the other night(in New York) when we needed somebody, I think he showed he’s an NBA player,” Brown added. “I think it’s a testament to him and the program.”
The Sixers will continue to chase the title they crave up at the NBA level, but they will also keep on eye on the development of Smith, Shayok, and others as they look towards the future as well. On the G League side, they will continue to do their job of pushing their guys toward the NBA. [lawrence-related id=20423,20435,20416]