76ers 2016-17 Schedule: Top Games, Championship Odds and Record Predictions

It’s time for the Philadelphia 76ers’ rise up the Eastern Conference standings to begin. Although the franchise remains years away from potential championship contention, the front office will hope last season’s 10 wins are a thing of the past.

Of course, there are benefits to bottoming out. Finishing in the basement of the standings and winning the ensuing draft lottery gave the Sixers the right to draft top prospect Ben Simmons, who has the skill set to become a legitimate franchise cornerstone.

Watching Simmons develop will be one of the main talking points for the fanbase as the focus shifts to the new campaign following the league’s schedule release. Let’s check out all of the important information before taking a closer look at how the season could play out for Philly.

2016-17 Details

Season Opener: Oct. 26 vs. Oklahoma City Thunder

Championship Odds: 300-1 (per Odds Shark)

Full Schedule: NBA.com

Top Matchups

Los Angeles Lakers (Dec. 16 and March 12)

Games between the top two selections in any draft always generate plenty of attention. That should be taken to another level this season as Simmons and the Sixers battle Brandon Ingram and the Lakers.

Fans received an early glimpse of what’s on the horizon when the highly touted prospects faced off in the Las Vegas Summer League. Simmons put up eight points, 10 rebounds and eight assists, while Ingram tallied seven points and four rebounds in a one-point Los Angeles victory.

NBA Stats provided a look at how both players performed in the offseason showcase:

Ben Simmons in 4 Summer League games:12.3 PPG7.8 RPG5.5 APGBrandon Ingram in 5 Summer League games:12.2 PPG4.2 RPG1.8 APG

— NBA Stats (@StatisticsNBA) July 19, 2016

Those numbers coincide with the expectation that Simmons is more prepared to make an instant impact, thanks to his well-rounded skill set. He needs to refine his jump shot to become a more reliable scorer, but the other areas of his game are beyond typical rookie standards.

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