A little over a week ago, the Philadelphia 76ers were brimming with confidence after erasing the Boston Celtics’ 3-1 series lead. 

The Sixers pulled off the upset as Joel Embiid was able to finish a series relatively healthy, VJ Edgecombe shone out, Tyrese Maxey stood on business, and Paul George was able to stave off Playoff P. The New York Knicks were coming off a grueling series against the Atlanta Hawks and this time, it was Philadelphia that had the plethora of wings entering the matchup. 

But in the span of a few days, all of that went for naught. 

The Knicks had the overall better health and the firepower, two things the Sixers seemed to be missing in the series. Perhaps the Celtics series sapped most of Philadelphia’s energy and New York rediscovered their scoring touch and poured on the points in levels not seen before. 

Now, the Sixers enter another offseason having stopped short of the conference finals. The memes and the analysis have come in, and it seems even those in Boston still feel the pain. 

Questions about the Philadelphia front office and current roster construction will creep in as the next stage of post-playoff grief. Rumors of discord within the organization tend to rear their ugly heads when a season ends in disappointment, but this time it seems the evidence is too hard to ignore. Apart from Maxey, Edgecombe, and Jared McCain, Sixers President of Basketball Operations Daryl Morey missed on his other picks, and him sending away McCain may have very well fortified a dynasty out West at their expense.  

Six years in with not much progress (by their standards) may suggest a shakeup, but that’s not the only thing Philadelphia may be considering. Embiid has been with the Sixers for more than a decade, and it has been a rocky relationship to say the least. Embiid being on the court for what turned out to be the last game of Philadelphia’s season is a positive, though, because the offseason would be all about rest rather than going under the knife. 

Moving on from him would be a seismic choice, especially given what he has done for the Sixers on the court. At the moment, they’ve already transitioned to a more perimeter-oriented game partly by design and, with Embiid’s injury history, circumstance. Depending on how things play out this offseason, a retooling of the roster may be a better path, especially as Embiid remains a valuable player when healthy. 

That caveat, though, is important and it’s one of the points the Philadelphia 76ers need to address this summer. How they will approach this could either vaunt them into bonafide title contenders or move on from an identity forged by The Process. Either way, feathers will be ruffled, but the burning desire to win pretty much trumps this all.