I remember years ago when MLB Commissioner Bowie Kuhn negated Charley Finley's wholesale
sell-off of his best A's players.
What Hinkie did was similar--he gave away the Sixers' best players for nothing. Which prompted his coach at the time to resign. He tried to lose by getting rid of his best players in lop-sided deals.
It used to be in sports that GMs couldn't get away with that kind of nonsense. But nowadays, anything goes.
I don't think Philly is out of the woods yet. Two of their high picks, Embiid and Simmons, have foot problems which could be chronic. There is no guarantee that Embiid won't break down if he plays "normal" NBA minutes. He was kept under wraps last year.
As to the subject of this thread, Aren't they pretty much guaranteed a high pick, as long as it isn't the overall final #1? If it isn't LA, it's the Kings, and they figure to be in the lottery.
As an aside, #1 overall is expensive. About $7M this year--which is one reason why Ainge traded it. More $ next year. That's a lot for a 19yo gamble.