WHILE THE EAGLES, midway through their season, appear to have righted the ship, their South Philly neighbors in the Wells Fargo Center are very much works in progress as their campaigns unfold.

What’s fascinating is how they’re trending.

The 76ers endured their time as basketball exiles, tanking for multiple seasons, drafting high-level first-rounders, and proceeding along what they smugly referred to as The Process. Joel Embiid and Tyrese Maxey developed into legitimate stars, but their supporting cast was a revolving door of studs who either didn’t fit in or were allowed to walk, and role players whom the front office prayed, futilely, could be more than their prior careers indicated. A string of early playoff exits brought us to this season, with Paul George the latest hoped-for complement. Injuries have taken their toll; Embiid, Maxey, and George have yet to be on the court at the same time, and the Sixers are a last-place 2-11. 

The news that Maxey called out Embiid in a team meeting for being late “for everything” is both encouraging and troubling. Encouraging because Maxey is likely to be in Philadelphia for longer than Embiid or George, and the team will need his leadership in the coming years. Troubling because Embiid has almost 200 million reasons to show up for work on time – to say nothing of showing up in shape to play.

No one expected anything much from the Flyers, and thus far they haven’t been disappointed. That said, while the Orange and Black are a mediocre 8-9-2, the vibe is thoroughly different. After years and years of signing aging, high-priced band-aids, the front office seems committed to a bottom-up rebuilding based on nurturing young talent and compiling a roster that can grow together into something sustainable. The team has been upfront about doing things the right way, a welcome transparency after decades of fruitless coasting on a pair of Stanley Cups fifty years ago. Whether they accomplish anything before the roster inevitably tunes out perpetually acerbic head coach John Tortorella remains to be seen.

At this point, the 76ers are struggling to make a whole out of their parts. The Flyers look to be on their way to a future whole that is more than the sum of theirs. | DL