Typically when a partnership comes to an end, there's an impulse to reflect and reassess; to suss out what went right or wrong, and decide what can be learned from the whole experience.
Those questions are impossible to answer about Sam Hinkie's severed relationship with the Philadelphia 76ers, the team he spent three years serving as president and general manager. They'll probably remain unanswerable for some time. The next few years will determine how Hinkie's legacy is judged; the future alone will absolve or damn him. As of now, his vision is incomplete, and judging him on his tenure with the Sixers would be like reviewing a book without reading the ending.
The bold, multi-year rebuilding vision he brought to Philadelphia in the spring of 2013 was, in its way, ingenious. In a league ruled by superstars, in which the most viable way to get and keep a superstar is to draft one, giving oneself as many opportunities as possible to pick at the top of the draft made so much sense it was a marvel no one had thought to try it. There had been tanking projects and rebuilds, to be sure, but none so transparent, comprehensive, long term, or ambitious. The Sixers, it seemed certain, would build something sustainable out of it. The only question seemed to be how long that would take, and how long they'd be willing to wait.
Not being afraid of losing freed the Sixers from the constraints that come with being beholden to winning. It allowed them to gamble on Nerlens Noel and Joel Embiid in the draft, knowing neither was likely to play his rookie season. It allowed them to take the long view with Dario Saric, who they knew wouldn't come over from Europe for at least two years. It allowed them to punt on their reigning rookie-of-the-year point guard less than two years after drafting him 11th overall, in exchange for the promise of a higher pick, with which they might draft someone with a higher ceiling. It allowed them to collect additional draft picks simply by agreeing to absorb unfavorable contracts into their oceans of cap space, or by jumping into trades as a facilitating third party. It allowed them to do a good many things a team with more of a conscience could never have stomached.
"There has been much criticism of our approach," Hinkie wrote in his digressive, meandering, philosophical 13-page resignation letter. "There will be more. A competitive league like the NBA necessitates a zig while our competitors comfortably zag. We often chose not to defend ourselves against much of the criticism, largely in an effort to stay true to the ideal of having the longest view in the room."
In some ways, his plan demonstrated a lack of foresight. Hinkie never seemed to account for the strain so much compounded losing would place on the Sixers' culture; on its players, its fans, its brand, its front office, or even himself. Without the benefit of talented veteran teammates, or exposure to anything but repeated failure at the NBA level, perhaps it isn't surprising that their prospects haven't quite developed as expected. It seems obvious now that convincing free agents (or even potential draftees) to join a team setting some new benchmark for losing every season would be a tough sell. It's hard to suddenly pivot from a losing ethos to a winning one, and that's without even taking into account Hinkie's alleged communication issues, which reportedly alienated agents around the league, and staffers inside the Sixers front office.
"We predicted it wrong," Hinkie confessed back in December. "That's my fault. I've made plenty of mistakes, and I'm sure I'll make more."
It's worth noting, though, that just about everything that could've gone wrong for Hinkie went wrong. The Sixers narrowly missed out on lottery spots that might've netted them Andrew Wiggins, Jabari Parker, Karl-Anthony Towns, or D'Angelo Russell, all of whom look like future studs. The Los Angeles Lakers have so far kept their draft pick (and likely will again this summer), that would've conveyed to Philadelphia if it fell outside the top five last year or the top three this year. Two years since being drafted, Embiid still hasn't played an NBA minute thanks to continued setbacks with his troublesome right foot. Jahlil Okafor, the Sixers' No. 3 overall pick this year, had a disappointing rookie year, on and off the court. To make matters worse, the guy picked one spot after him has flourished, after refusing to work out for Philadelphia in the lead-up to the draft.
In the past three drafts, the Sixers have picked third, third, sixth, 10th, and 11th, and, as of yet, haven't come away with anyone who looks remotely like a foundational, franchise-altering player. At times, ironically, they haven't been bad enough, getting unwittingly out-tanked the last two years by the Milwaukee Bucks, Minnesota Timberwolves, and New York Knicks.
And still, for all that, they're not in bad shape. They have the inside track on a No. 1 pick in a draft that seems to promise future stars in Brandon Ingram and Ben Simmons. Noel and Okafor remain intriguing, if incompatible as a long-term fit. Embiid may yet overcome his health and conditioning issues, and blossom into a game-changing big man. Saric has dominated the Turkish League, and could come overseas this summer or next. And the Sixers still have a treasure trove of shiny assets in the vault. This whole thing could turn around in a hurry.
"A league with 30 intense competitors requires a culture of finding new, better ways to solve repeating problems," Hinkie wrote. "In the short term, investing in that sort of innovation often doesn't look like much progress, if any."
It will undoubtedly look like progress in the long term, if only because given where they are now (with the third-worst winning percentage for any team in NBA history), it's impossible they won't soon improve dramatically. How dramatically? That's the question on which the famed "Process" will be judged.
Whatever happens, Hinkie's fearless approach to team-building was a radical, fascinating, thrilling, infuriating, brilliant, foolhardy, and ultimately worthwhile NBA experiment.
It's a pity he won't get to see it though to the end.
