Former Philadelphia 76ers general manager Sam Hinkie is remembered for his focus on analytics and his extreme take on rebuilding. However, his rebuilding tactics allowed the Sixers to nab a star duo in Ben Simmons and Joel Embiid. He was unceremoniously pushed out of his job in 2016 and later, Philadelphia brought in Elton Brand for the job.
Hinkie made a lot of controversial moves stockpiling assets that the team could use for the future. For example, due to a 2015 trade with the Sacramento Kings, the Sixers and Kings swapped picks in the 2017 NBA Draft with Philadelphia moving up from 5 to 3. They then sent that pick to the Boston Celtics to move up to 1 and draft Markelle Fultz rather than Jayson Tatum.
The deal was turned into a joke in Bleacher Report’s animated series “Game of Zones” where Hinkie was locked in a dungeon along with Brooklyn Nets guard Kyrie Irving. Hinkie asks Irving how many championships the Sixers have won with Simmons, Embiid, and what he assumes is Tatum to which Irving was confused at the question.
Unfortunately for the Sixers, and for Hinkie, Philadelphia selected Fultz and it has not worked out the way they hoped it would. [lawrence-related id=31363,31356,31341]