I have made the analogy before at previous stops, but there are more parallels between Sam Hinkie and the 1980’s version of Howard Stern than you might initially think. One of the more memorable scenes in “Private Parts” is when Paul Giamatti’s character (a super strict radio executive that Stern dubs “Pig Vomit”) finally learns how well Stern’s edgy show has done in the ratings. To Pig Vomit’s amazement, this was because whether the listener loved or hated the shock jock, they wanted to see what he said next.

That kind of sounds like the current Sixers regime, right?

There are a lot of bad teams in the NBA, but there isn’t a Minnesota Timberwolves or Orlando Magic feature in The New York Times Magazine. The Grey Lady certainly isn’t spending any time chronicling Jordan Clarkson’s late-season surge in La-La Land. For most basketball fans, the Sixers are the most interesting bad team in a long time because of the way they’ve gone about becoming so. Like almost all of the long-form journalism in the magazine, Michael Sokolove’s piece is definitely worth the read. Here, I’ll highlight some of the parts I found most interesting, which is to say some of the lesser-known details.

1. Henry Sims has become a hardened pro through experience. Not only did he show up at the 2012 NBA Draft only to go undrafted, but Sims has also experienced the cutthroat nature of league firsthand on multiple occasions:

I asked Sims about the day he was cut from New Orleans. I’d heard he was on a jet with his teammates, awaiting takeoff for a flight to the next game, when a team official told him to get off the airplane and pick up his luggage, which had been removed from the cargo hold. “Yeah, that’s exactly the way it went,” he said. Sims’s voice is deep, but he speaks quietly. “Pro ball’s a hard business, man,” he continued. “A real hard business. If you don’t know that, you shouldn’t be in it.”

2. The Sixers are using chips in basketballs, which is very futuristic of them:

One day while I was in [Brett Brown’s] office, he had a basketball sitting in the corner that was plugged into an outlet, charging. He explained to me that a computer chip in it could measure the arc of shots, speed of passes and even how hard a player pounds his dribble. He had used the ball with his 10-year-old son’s team, which he coached whenever his schedule allowed it, and was looking forward to trying it at a Sixers practice next season.

3. When the Sixers can practice, most of the teaching portion is extremely basic stuff, which is exactly how you would imagine it to be:

“Come on fellas, let’s go,” Brown said, carrying a couple of orange cones under his arm to set up a drill, as if he were running a basketball camp.

Each Sixers practice begins with the “daily vitamin” — stretching and drills to reinforce basketball fundamentals. On this day, the players worked at catching passes on the move and coming to a jump stop, to avoid being called for traveling. They also practiced how to properly defend a shot without being whistled for a foul. When Brown set up the next drill, he said, “Fellas, I want you to go through this at 60 percent so our new guys can see what it is.” (There were always new guys.)

Nothing groundbreaking in there, but I included those details because they are unique to those who follow the Sixers on a daily basis. The whole thing is worth a read, though. From here, the writer was very fair laying out the risk/reward nature of the strategy. For Sixers fans that think Hinkie and the front office consistently receive a bad rap, it’s all you could ask for.

Other Sixers news, notes and analysis from around the web:

Eskin’s information is likely solid, but I don’t believe this bit of news matters much months after it happened. From what I can tell, the rookie’s initial growing pains are water under the bridge.

Brett Brown acknowledged the other day that he wasn’t happy with Embiid’s work ethic at times this season, but that changed once the rookie center was allowed to ramp up his activity on the court. We already knew that Embiid was sent home from the Ice Capades trip, so learning that he lost some coin in the process doesn’t dramatically alter our understanding of the seven-footer’s redshirt year. It’s not like the other half of JOHANNA is hurting for money.

While we’re on the subject of Embiid, last week’s compelling NHL Draft Lottery brought back memories of the NBA Draft last year:

Sixers' Noel is our top rookie because of what he overcame: Scott Howard-Cooper, NBA.com

The MVP race and surrounding debate (mostly about Steph Curry and James Harden) has been a fun subplot this season, but the Rookie of the Year discussion is also sneaky compelling. Mostly everyone agrees that Andrew Wiggins will win the award. I voted for Nikola Mirotic. Howard-Cooper, who has written NBA’s “Rookie Ladder” feature all season, is throwing his support behind Nerlens Noel. Even if he won’t win the award, it’s nice to see Noel’s unique brand of defense receive some much-deserved national love. Here’s part of what Howard-Cooper had to say:

Wiggins is having a good offensive season for a rookie. Noel is about to join David Robinson as the only newcomers to average at least 1.50 steals and 1.50 blocks in a rare combination of speed with size and inside power. Noel is so being measured against everyone that the comparisons include past players.

While all indications are that Wiggins will win the media vote for the award, maybe easily, Noel is the only one among the four primary candidates -- Elfrid Payton, Mirotic, Wiggins, Noel -- who played his way beyond the class. His being in the Top 10 overall in two tried categories and first in three rookie columns is a resumè that should not be overlooked.

Who should Nerlens Noel study? David Thorpe, ESPN Insider:

As part of his yearly series, Thorpe suggests that Noel should study fellow Kentucky Wildcat and future best player on the planet Anthony Davis. He cites the massive jump in skill-level that Davis has made on the offensive end since leaving Lexington after one season. I’m pretty confident saying that Noel’s offensive ceiling won’t reach even Davis’ current level, but there are elements of his game that can be cherry-picked. Here’s part of what Thorpe had to say (Insider only):

Noel, of course, doesn't have much of an offensive game right now. But he can start by adding one new tool at a time, focusing first on getting better at making paint shots. Ultimately, though, his goal needs to be: "I want to be as good as Davis." He's already on Davis' level as an elite athlete.

Sixers' rebuilding plan baffles Lakers GM: Baxter Holmes, ESPN Los Angeles

I wish general mangers talked more openly on the record. The NBA is already the greatest league in the world, and more Mark Cubans would only enhance the overall product. By the way, can you imagine Hinkie on “Shark Tank?” In my opinion, he’d attack the bidding like Mr. Wonderful (lowballing everyone) but do it in the most polite way possible. It would be an absolute game-changer.

You can of read a lot of GM’s anonymously ripping the Sixers, but isn’t it so much better when everything is out in the open? Mitch Kupchak didn’t exactly rip them, but he made it clear that he doesn’t agree with what they’re doing. I know Jeanie Buss approves, although you could easily argue the Lakers were tanking pretty darn hard this season. Kupchak also believes in karma, something I’ll go out on a limb and say isn’t discussed much here:

"I still don't understand what they're doing," Kupchak said Thursday at the Lakers' practice facility, where the team conducted exit interviews after its 2014-15 season ended the day before.

Kupchak made his remarks when a reporter asked about the Lakers' philosophy toward rebuilding and how it compared to, say, the 76ers, whose plan, while bold, appears rather clear for all to see.

"Can you explain it to me, if it's so clear?" Kupchak asked, seemingly half-joking.

The NBA’s Furious 17: Capturing the Noncontenders’ State of Mind: Bill Simmons, Grantland

If Kupchak doesn’t get what the Sixers are doing, Simmons doesn’t like it. Although The Sports Guy gets brownie points for incorporating the Tao of Dom Toretto into an NBA column, I have to agree to disagree about the Sixers. If I could offer a little constructive criticism for Simmons, it would be that he’s maybe letting his moral stance on the rebuild cloud his evaluation on its progress. The same might be true with his beloved Boston Celtics, who are about to pick 16th in the draft without any elite talent or a clear answer on how they’ll get some.

Here’s his last paragraph, which actually isn’t all that debatable (except the Ponzi Scheme part, which is tired). I just would phrase the what-if’s in a more positive light:

Sixers fans need luck with (a) the 2015 and 2016 lotteries, (b) the health of Embiid and Noel, (c) the Lakers pick, and (d) Saric. They need to know whether Embiid and Noel can actually play together. They have to hope that Sam Hinkie knows what he’s doing … and considering that he just punted on MCW after a year and a half, who knows? They have to trust that their owners, at some point, are going to spend money. It’s the illusion of hope, personifed. Just trust us. We know what we’re doing. Well, what if they don’t? What if this really is a Ponzi scheme? However it works out, Philly fans will always remember it. Either your NBA team will be good in two to three years, or this will become one of the five best 30 for 30s ever. There’s no third outcome. This starts now. Shut up and drink your Corona.

Richardson open to re-signing with 76ers: Keith Pompey, Philadelphia Inquirer

One final bit of roster news. I’m not sure if the Sixers will want J-Rich back, but him wanting to return is another sign that the locker room wasn’t this toxic environment it was often portrayed to be:

"I don't have a problem coming back here," said Richardson, whose contract expires in June. "I like every guy in this locker room, believe it or not. . . . And I love coach Brett [Brown]. He's one of my favorite coaches of all time. So, yeah, I'm really open to [coming] back."

Set your DVR’s for May 16th. “IVERSON” marks the second basketball documentary with local ties that Showtime will run on its airwaves this year (Kobe Bryant’s “Muse” debuted in February). Unlike Bryant’s documentary, Iverson wasn’t the driving force behind this one. For that reason, I’m not getting my hopes up too high. To best capture A.I. and tell his story, one would assume that the director needs him fully engaged and totally on board with the project. You know, just like how he played every single night. We’ll see how Zatella Beatty did.

Sports Illustrated reviewed the doc last year when it premiered at Tribeca. If you recall, Iverson has already been featured in the excellent 30 for 30 film, “No Crossover: The Trial of Allen Iverson.” Among all of the great 30 for 30’s, Steve James’ story of racial conflict in Hampton, Virginia is often underrated because the story’s main subject is only a piece of a larger message. Now with the legendary guard’s life serving as the major focus of a full-length documentary, the film has a lot of potential. Hopefully, most of it is tapped into.

In case you missed it at PhillyVoice:

1. We gave a state of the union of sorts on owner Josh Harris, while also doing the very same with Brett Brown at the end of Year Two.

2.  We recapped Michael Carter-Williams’ strong homecoming, with a little help from Woody Allen.