The Sixers season ended in embarrassment, but also made clear one important thing

Maybe it needed to end this way.

Now, there can be no misconceptions about who the Sixers are. Not after the Mother’s Day spanking the Knicks administered to them on Sunday afternoon. To get swept at home is one thing. To do it in front of a largely pro-New York crowd is another. But the main thing is the manner in which the Sixers did it.

A team that ends its season with a humiliation this abject cannot possibly carry with it into the summer any illusions about its roster. There is no greater “is.” The Sixers are who they were in a 144-114 loss to the Knicks, and what they were is a long, long way from good.

One thing is clear. It may or may not be actionable. But it is beyond dispute. The Sixers need to build toward a future where Tyrese Maxey and V.J. Edgecombe are surrounded by a roster that fits them. From this point forward, any championship aspirations must begin with their young backcourt.

The Sixers can’t allow Joel Embiid to be a factor in any decision that they make with regard to their future. That includes the future of their roster composition, their style of play, the futures of their head coach and president. It includes the future of 36-year-old Paul George, and it includes the future of Embiid himself.

The Sixers cannot afford to proceed as if Embiid will ever again be anything greater than he was this season. It is unfortunate to have to acknowledge such a thing. Embiid isn’t just one of the greatest players in franchise history. He is one of the most important. For six years, he almost single-handedly made the Sixers relevant. When he was on the court, they were a contender. That no longer is the case.

There are still stretches of greatness, most recently Games 5, 6, and 7 and of the Sixers’ remarkable comeback from a three-games-to-one deficit against the Celtics in the first round. But Embiid missed the first three games of that series, and he spent much of a fourth trying to find his sea legs. By the start of the next series, those legs had abandoned him. The Sixers were blown out in Game 1. Embiid missed Game 2. In Games 3 and 4, he was nothing close to a difference-maker.

The danger is that Embiid ends up making a difference in the wrong direction. The impact of his repeated absences transcends the depth chart. It is more holistic in nature.

The Sixers learned this season how difficult it is to develop any sort of continuity or identity when a player the magnitude of Embiid is constantly coming and going. They are a house divided: one kind of team when he is there, another completely different team when he isn’t. The first team is the one that can compete for a championship, in theory. But the second team is the one the Sixers most often have. And the transition periods between the two can look downright ugly.

The last time the Sixers actually looked like the theoretical version of their best selves was a 2024 first-round playoff series against these same Knicks. New York won it in six, but outscored the Sixers by only a single point in sum. The next summer was the summer they signed George, among others. Embiid has played a total of 64 games since, playoffs included. That simply is not a feasible thing, especially given Edgecombe’s potential, and the growth he needs to achieve it.

Embiid will almost certainly be here in some form or fashion. He has three years and nearly $190 million left on his contract. There may not be enough draft capital in the world to convince a team to absorb that contract. The Sixers desperately need to figure out a way to lessen the extent to which his presence looms.

It will not be easy. From a practical standpoint, Embiid’s salary limits the Sixers’ ability to build through free agency or take on salary in a trade. That could theoretically change if they found a way to trade George, who has two years and more than $100 million left on his deal. But it’s difficult to envision a deal that would make sense for both the Sixers and some other team.

There will be plenty of time to dissect all of those details. The important thing right now is the understanding. For the last four games, the Sixers have seen a championship-caliber team up close and personal. They saw it loudly on Sunday. The stop-the-fight-moment occurred five minutes into the second half. Knicks superstar Jalen Brunson weaved his way to the rim and brought the pro-Knicks crowd to its feet with a reverse layup and then, after an errant Joel Embiid pass on the inbounds, drilled a three-pointer to put New York up 99-70.

For the second time in four games, the starters were exiting the court early in the fourth quarter. The out-numbered Sixers fans were exiting with them. All that was left was an arena still remarkably full, its patrons clad almost exclusively in orange and blue, jeering the Sixers into another early offseason.