Mike Gansey Deserves Your Vote Of Confidence

Mike Gansey hasn’t even been running the Sixers for two months. Yet his first impression could not have been better as the offseason rolls on and we approach a bit of a dead time on the NBA calendar. Of course, we’re all waiting for the big shoe to drop as LeBron James remains an unrestricted free agent. The fact that the Sixers are even one of the reported finalists should speak volumes to Gansey’s ability to clean up what many would have called a salary cap mess upon his arrival.

Gansey’s three primary additions so far were Jaylen Brown, Anfernee Simons and Labaron Philion. You could lump Dean Wade in there too if you’re optimistic about Wade’s fit in Philadelphia. Gansey’s been busy, but he’s not just making moves to make moves. He’s doing things that should give Sixers fans an optimistic outlook both in the short-term and the long-term.

It goes without saying that adding Brown is an upgrade to Philadelphia’s current starting lineup. The move also makes the franchise’s long-term outlook much brighter with Brown, 30 when the season starts, replacing 36-year-old Paul George. It was always going to be a hard task for Gansey to unload the final two years of George’s contract, but to do so in a trade that brought back Brown should have Sixers fans feeling confident that Gansey can navigate less chummy salary cap waters in the future.

Then there’s the addition of Simons. At 27 years old, Simons signed a two-year deal with the Sixers worth just over $12 million. Simons should take the minutes vacated by the departure of Quentin Grimes and statistically looks like a better player than Grimes was. Gansey was able to cheaply add Simons to the roster in what could be a nice upgrade on the margins. Even if Simons doesn’t play in Philadelphia beyond the duration of this two-year contract, if he’s successful as a Sixer, fans should feel good about Gansey’s ability to make similar cost-effective upgrades to the bench in the future.

Drafting Philon showed another reason for optimism for Sixers fans concerning Gansey’s leadership in the front office. For as easy as it is to look at the current roster heading into a draft and deciding which prospects are the best fits for said roster, we all know that drafting the best player available is a better strategy for long-term sustainability. 

Gansey could have prioritized a front court player who would have had a faster pathway to lots of playing time. He could have avoided a guard and dodged the criticism that comes with taking a guard with the top draft asset that came back in the Jared McCain trade. But Gansey must have seen a potential with Philon and the team’s starting guards Tyrese Maxey and VJ Edgecombe. He also likely viewed Philon as a player that could make a bigger long-term impact than some of the bigs that he would have selected and that’s what the draft is all about.

While you might not be as bullish on the acquisition of Wade, Gansey had a relationship with Wade from their time together in Cleveland that had to have helped in bringing the veteran forward to Philadelphia. Relationships, no matter how small, are always going to be a part of running a front office and Gansey has already displayed a good ability to maintain previous relationships.

These are all positive signs for the franchise moving forward. A lot of them probably factored into the Sixers getting a seat at the table when it comes to the LeBron James sweepstakes. If they’re in the conversation for LeBron, regardless of how old he is, that’s a sign that the guy in charge of the front office is doing a good job.