NBA Rumors: Isaiah Thomas' Time To "Trust The Process" in Philadelphia

Being heavily favored to reach the Finals, the Sixers are no longer the same team from five years ago. Led by all-stars Joel Embiid and Ben Simmons, they spearheaded Philly to a 5-0 win-loss record to start the season before conceding their undefeated card in Phoenix last night, 114-109.

Embiid did not play as he’s serving his suspension following his fight against Minnesota’s Karl-Anthony Towns, and their bench’s weakness was highlighted. Al Horford played center and moved second-year guard Furkan Korkmaz to the starting five but the bench only added 19 points to their team output.

It would be a good connection for Philadelphia, who lived by their “Trust The Process” mantra, to add another player who desperately needs a place to start his own process of regaining his old MVP-caliber form in Isaiah Thomas. After his departure from Boston where he made his career-best average of 28.9 points a game, the 5-foot-9 guard appeared to be far from his old, deadly self while donning the green and white.

According to an article from Bleacher Report, the now 5-1 Sixers appeared to have thrown their rookie Matisse Thybulle and have given their bench a big jump to sustain the starter’s attack. Korkmaz, fortunately, is making the most of his extended minutes by averaging 16 points, 2.7 boards and two assists in his last three games but his 20-point outing against the Suns was still not enough to keep their unblemished record.

The 30-year old Thomas was given the green light to start by coach Scott Brooks per CBS Sports but only scored nine points, two rebounds, six assists, a steal and a block on a poor 4-of-12 shooting in 24 minutes. Prior to this game, he came off the bench on all three games and averaged better – 16.3 points, three boards, 7.3 assists in 21 minutes each outing.

With Thomas flourishing in an off-the-bench role, the former 60^th pick of 2011 draft would be a good fit. He can provide the firepower that the Philly needs from their second unit if they are eyeing to get their hands on the Larry O’Brien trophy by the end of this season.