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How the Sixers stack up against NBA's other young teams

Sixers began the season as the youngest team in the NBA, but a handful of other squads are in a similar position.

SINCE NO ONE with the Sixers will give a time frame for when the organization's rebuilding efforts will result in a championship-contending squad, it's been left to the fan base to determine whether this plan covers 4, 5 or more years.

I'll give Sixers president/general manager Sam Hinkie credit, because he has done what many once considered impossible and forced Philly fans to accept the meaning of the word "patience."

With the Sixers being only two drafts and two offseasons into a massive reconstruction based on acquiring and developing young talent, it is too early to judge when or whether things will turn for the better.

At the start of the 2014-15 season, the Sixers were the youngest team in the NBA, with an average age of 23.4 years. That is not much of a concern if you are not looking at competing for a title in the immediate future.

The Sixers, however, are not the only team in this situation. Six other teams began the year with an average age under 25 years.

Boston, Minnesota, New Orleans and Orlando were tied at 24.9 years. Utah was 23.9 and Milwaukee at 23.7.

Obviously, we don't have crystal balls and can't know the wide variety of things that could happen to drastically alter the makeup of teams, but some will stay on a long-term development plan that is similar to the Sixers'.

Who is off to the best start for being successful at that?

For further discussion's sake, let's not get into potential trades, free-agent signings or future draft picks.

Speculating about unknowns like that adds too many variables for even a "just-for-fun" discussion.

We'll keep this to players on the current rosters.

And, since we can't stay in rebuild mode forever, let's say that the goal for the Sixers becoming a legitimate contender is 2017-18. That is the last one that the Sixers are guaranteed to have contract control over first-round picks Michael Carter-Williams, Nerlens Noel and Joel Embiid, and complementary pieces Robert Covington and Jerami Grant.

We'll even say that the Sixers are able to entice 2014 lottery pick Dario Saric over from Europe to South Philadelphia by then.

That's not a bad core to put faith in. I'm the first to concede that I think the Sixers have gone too far in disregarding the current product they put on the court, but that does not prevent me from seeing Hinkie's vision.

You're talking long-term development of a rookie of the year in Carter-Williams, a big man projected as generational center in Embiid - who recently was ranked by ESPN.com as the 14th best player in the NBA under 25 despite not playing a game yet - and a guy considered one of the top prospects to come out of Europe in Saric.

If you consider the contract control the Sixers have over their nucleus, this is a strong position for looking at hope 3 years down the road.

Is it the best of the under-25 teams?

Boston Celtics

Point guard Avery Bradley, center Kelly Olynyk, and rookies Marcus Smart and James Young aren't that special, especially when they are all you have locked up through 2017-18.

Considering their legacy, long-term rebuilding is never a real option for the Celtics. This advantage undoubtedly goes to the Sixers.

New Orleans Pelicans

New Orleans forward Anthony Davis isn't only the best player under 25 in the world, he might soon become the best, period.

But Davis is under control only through 2016-17. To keep him, the Pelicans might also have to give big money to guards Jrue Holiday (ranked 15th by ESPN) and Tyreke Evans.

Right now, this situation looks similar to the one New Orleans had with Chris Paul. Ultimately, it could end up the same way, with Davis moving on, and that means advantage to the Sixers.

Orlando Magic

With center Nikola Vucevic (19th by ESPN), second-year guard Victor Oladipo, rookie forward Aaron Gordon and rookie point guard Elfrid Payton, Orlando's situation might best mirror the Sixers' moving forward.

Orlando already has committed about $50 million to Vucevic, who might not project as high as Embiid, but is averaging 19.5 points and 11.2 rebounds in his fourth NBA season.

Embiid's upside and the potential addition of Saric swing this advantage to the Sixers.

Milwaukee Bucks

If ascending point guard Brandon Knight (20th by ESPN) were already locked into a long-term deal and if center Larry Sanders did not go off the rails after signing a $44 million extension in 2013, I might like this situation best.

Yes, rookie Jabari Parker (25th) blew out his knee, and 19-year European prospect Damien Inglis also will miss his rookie season, but that makes their situations no different from Embiid's.

Second-year forward Giannis "The Greek Freak" Antetokounmpo (ninth) is a superb athlete with a high NBA ceiling.

Still, Knight isn't locked in, and Sanders does have off-the-court issues, so the advantage is to the Sixers.

Minnesota Timberwolves

With 19-year-old rookies Andrew Wiggins (the No. 1 overall pick in 2014) and Zach LaVine, plus 24-year-old point guard Ricky Rubio, 22-year-old forward Shabazz Muhammad, and 25-year-old center Gorgui Dieng, Minnesota has five players who could form a special core.

But the Timberwolves are caught in a netherworld because 29-year-old center Nikola Pekovic is owed $48 million through 2017-18, a lot of money for an older player in a rebuilding project.

I love Wiggins (18th by ESPN), Rubio (24th) and LaVine, so I will call this a push with the Sixers.

Utah Jazz

Forwards Derrick Favors (11th by ESPN) and Gordon Hayward (12th) and point guard Alec Burks already have more than 3 years of NBA service.

Second-year guard Trey Burke, second-year center Rudy Gobert and rookie Rodney Hood are good players.

At only 19, rookie guard Dante Exum (23rd) is considered a potential franchise-level player.

All of those guys are under contract through 2017-18, setting up Utah with a perfect situation and an advantage over the Sixers.