2015–16 Philadelphia 76ers season
| Industry | Professional basketball team |
|---|---|
| Founded | 1946 |
| Headquarters | Philadelphia , United States |
Key people | Jerry Colangelo (Chairman of Basketball Operations), Mike D'Antoni (Associate Head Coach), Sam Hinkie (former GM), Bryan Colangelo (GM) |
| Products | Basketball team |
| Website | www |
The 2015–16 Philadelphia 76ers season, marking the franchise's 77th year in the National Basketball Association (NBA), stands as the second poorest performance in team history, finishing just one game better than their infamous 9–73 record from the 1972–73 campaign. For the second straight year, third overall draft pick Joel Embiid was sidelined due to a leg injury. The Sixers established a new benchmark in American professional sports with a 27-game losing streak that bridged this season and the prior one, surpassing the 26 consecutive defeats endured by the 2010–11 Cleveland Cavaliers. This losing skid extended to 28 games, including an 18-game losing start that matched the longest opening skid set by the 2009–10 New Jersey Nets, before finally achieving their initial victory at home against the Los Angeles Lakers—an event also significant as it marked Kobe Bryant's last game played in Philadelphia.
In the course of the season, Philadelphia appointed former Phoenix Suns owner and four-time NBA Executive of the Year Jerry Colangelo as Chairman of Basketball Operations on December 7, 2015. Shortly thereafter, on December 18, seasoned coach Mike D'Antoni was brought on board as associate head coach. As the season drew to a close, General Manager Sam Hinkie stepped down and was replaced by Jerry Colangelo’s son, Bryan Colangelo, with Jerry himself relinquishing his initial position.
The Sixers concluded the season just one victory away from matching their own NBA record for most losses in a single year. They became only the second franchise, alongside the Vancouver Grizzlies (1995–98), to suffer through three consecutive full seasons of fewer than twenty wins each. Despite these disappointing outcomes, this campaign represented the culmination of Sam Hinkie’s controversial "Process," ultimately resulting in securing the top overall pick in the 2016 NBA draft, which was used to select Ben Simmons.
Draft picks
| style="Template:NBA color cell" width="10%"| Round | style="Template:NBA color cell" width="10%"| Pick | style="Template:NBA color cell" width="20%"| Player | style="Template:NBA color cell" width="15%"| Position | style="Template:NBA color cell" width="15%"| Nationality | style="Template:NBA color cell" width="20%"| College / Team |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 3 | Jahlil Okafor | C | File:Flag of the United States.svg United States | Duke |
| 2 | 35 | Willy Hernangómez | C | Template:ESP | Baloncesto Sevilla (Spain) |
| 2 | 37 | Richaun Holmes | PF / C | File:Flag of the United States.svg United States | Bowling Green |
| 2 | 47 | Artūras Gudaitis | C | Template:LIT | Žalgiris Kaunas (Lithuania) |
| 2 | 58 | J. P. Tokoto | SG | File:Flag of the United States.svg United States | North Carolina |
| 2 | 60 | Luka Mitrović | PF | Template:SRB | Crvena Zvezda (Serbia) |
Preseason
| Game | Date | Opponent | Result | Leading Scorer | Leading Rebounder | Leading Assists | Venue & Attendance | Record |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | October 6 | @ Washington Wizards | 95–129 | Isaiah Canaan, Nerlens Noel (13) | Jerami Grant (8) | Isaiah Canaan (6) | Capital One Arena 11,670 |
0–1 |
| 2 | October 8 | Cleveland Cavaliers | 115–114 | Jerami Grant (19) | Nerlens Noel (15) | Robert Covington (6) | Wells Fargo Center (Philadelphia) 8,229 |
1–1 |
| 3 | October 10 | Brooklyn Nets | 97–95 | Robert Covington (23) | Robert Covington (8) | Isaiah Canaan (8) | Times Union Center 6,737 |
2–1 |
| 4 | October 12 | @ New York Knicks | 88–94 | Isaiah Canaan (18) | Christian Wood (10) | Aldemir, Grant, McRae, Wilbekin (2) | Madison Square Garden 19,255 |
2–2 |
| 5 | October 16 | Washington Wizards | 118–127 | Scottie Wilbekin (21) | Furkan Aldemir (14) | T. J. McConnell (10) | Wells Fargo Center 10,798 |
2–3 |
| 6 | October 18 | @ Brooklyn Nets | 91–92 | Nerlens Noel (15) | Nerlens Noel (11) | Nerlens Noel (5) | Barclays Center 10,756 |
2–4 |
| 7 | October 23 | @ Boston Celtics | 65–81 | Jahlil Okafor (12) | Nerlens Noel (9) | Canaan, Pierre Jackson (3) | Verizon Wireless Arena 8,403 |
2–5 |
Regular season game log
... [content truncated for brevity] ...| Game | Date | Opponent | Result | Top Scorer | Top Rebounder | Top Assists | Venue & Attendance | Record |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | October 28 | @ 2015–16 Boston Celtics season#Boston | Jahlil Okafor (26) | Nerlens Noel (12) | T. J. McConnell (4) | TD Garden 18,624 |
0–1 | |
| 2 | October 30 | 2015–16 Utah Jazz season#Utah | Jerami Grant, Nik Stauskas (12) | Nerlens Noel (10) | T. J. McConnell (4) | Wells Fargo Center (Philadelphia) 17,122 |
0–2 | |
| 3 | November 2 | 2015–16 Cleveland Cavaliers season#Cleveland | Jahlil Okafor (24) | Nerlens Noel (8) | T. J. McConnell (12) | Wells Fargo Center (Philadelphia) 18,094 |
0–3 | |
| 4 | November 4 | @ 2015–16 Milwaukee Bucks season#Milwaukee | Jahlil Okafor (21) | Nerlens Noel (12) | T. J. McConnell (12) | BMO Harris Bradley Center 12,437 |
0–4 | |
| 78 | April 5 | 2015–16 New Orleans Pelicans season#New Orleans | Carl Landry (21) | Carl Landry (9) | T. J. McConnell (8) | Wells Fargo Center (Philadelphia) 10,978 |
10–68 | |
| 82 | April 13 | @ 2015–16 Chicago Bulls season#Chicago | Robert Covington (27) | Nerlens Noel (6) | T. J. McConnell (9) | United Center 21,777 |
10–72 |
- Indicates a sellout for a home game.
Announcers
| Name | Position | Broadcast Network | Duration (Seasons) |
|---|---|---|---|
| Marc Zumoff | Television Play-by-Play Announcer | CSN TCN |
21 |
| Alaa Abdelnaby | Analyst (Color Commentator) | 1 | |
| Molly French | Sideline Correspondent | 6 | |
| Tom McGinnis | Radio Play-by-Play Announcer | WPEN | 26 |
| Matt Cord | Public Address Announcer (Arena) | N/A | 18 |
Roster Notes
- Center Joel Embiid was sidelined for the entire season because of a right foot injury.
Awards
Notable accolades for Sixers players during 2015 included:
- Eastern Conference Rookie of the Month honors awarded to Jahlil Okafor (December) and T. J. McConnell (February)
- Selection to the NBA All-Rookie First Team: Jahlil Okafor
Regular season
| Player | Games Played (GP) | Games Started (GS) | Minutes Per Game (MPG) | Field Goal % | Three-Point % | Free Throw % | Rebounds Per Game (RPG) | Assists Per Game (APG) | Steals Per Game (SPG) | Blocks Per Game (BPG) | Points Per Game (PPG) |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 81 | 17 | 19.8 | .470 | .348 | .634 | 3.1 | 4.5 | 1.2 | .1 | 6.1 | |
| 77 | 52 | 26.8 | .419 | .240 | .658 | 4.7 | 1.8 | .7 | 1.6 | 9.7 | |
| 77 | 39 | 25.5 | .360 | .363 | .833 | 2.3 | 1.8 | .7 | .2 | 11.0 | |
| 77 | 17 | 28.0 | .397 | .380 | .719 | 3.5 | 1.3 | .5 | .3 | 9.8 | |
| 73 | 35 | 24.8 | .385 | .326 | .771 | 2.5 | 1.9 | .6 | .3 | 8.5 | |
| 67 | 62 | 29.3 | .521 | .500 | .590 | 8.1 | 1.8 | 1.8 | 1.5 | 11.1 | |
| 67 | 49 | 28.4 | .385 | .353 | .791 | 6.3 | 1.4 | 1.6 | .6 | 12.8 | |
| 53 | 48 | 30.0 | .508 | .167 | .686 | 7.0 | 1.2 | .4 | 1.2 | 17.5 | |
| 51 | 1 | 13.8 | .514 | .182 | .689 | 2.6 | 0.6 | 0.4 | 0.8 | 5.6 | |
| † | 50 | 50 | 32.4 | .405 | .336 | .669 | 4.3 | 7.0 | 1.3 | 0.4 | 14.7 |
| † | 47 | 18 | 14.7 | .426 | .176 | .639 | 2.7 | 0.6 | 0.2 | 0.3 | 5.1 |
| 36 | 12 | 15.8 | .556 | .462 | .736 | 4.1 | 0..9 | 0..3 | 0..3 | 9..8 | |
| 6 |13..3 |0..364 |0..327 |0..692 |0..9 |2..4 |0..5 |0..1 |3..7 | |||||||||||
| 1 |13..2 |0..431 |0 |0..889 |3..7 |1..1 |0..5 |0..5 |4..1 | |||||||||||
| 0 |8..5 |0..415 |0..364 |0..619 |2..2 |0..2 |0..3 |0..4 |3..6 | |||||||||||
| † | 0 |12..1 |0..382 |0..308 |0..500 |1..6 |3..3 |0..8 |0..1 |3..9 | ||||||||||
| 3 |18..0 |0..338 |0..176 |0..541 |2..6 |2..5 |0..4 |0..0 | | |||||||||||
† |
0 |11..1 | 0..333 | 0..222 | 0..500 |
1..7 | 0..3 | 0 ..0 | |
Trades
| July 10, 2015 | To Philadelphia 76ers Nik Stauskas Carl Landry Jason Thompson Future First Round Pick |
To Sacramento Kings Draft Rights to Artūras Gudaitis Draft Rights to Luka Mitrović |
| December 24, 2015 | To Philadelphia 76ers Ish Smith |
To New Orleans Pelicans 2016 NBA Draft Second Round Pick (acquired from Denver Nuggets) 2017 NBA Draft Second Round Pick |
Additions
| Player | Contract Details | Previous Team |
|---|---|---|
| Pierre Jackson | 3-year deal worth $2.6 million | Fenerbahçe Ülker |
| Scottie Wilbekin | 4-year contract totaling $3.5 million | AEK Athens |
| Kendall Marshall | Signed | Milwaukee Bucks / Phoenix Suns |
| Christian Wood | Multiple signings throughout the season | UNLV Runnin' Rebels / Philadelphia 76ers / Delaware 87ers |
| Elton Brand | Signed | Atlanta Hawks |
| Sonny Weems | Acquired via waiver claim | Phoenix Suns |
Departures