It’s funny the difference that one week can make.  Just six days ago, the Philadelphia 76ers were about to start their season with their lowest expectations in years.  Their best player from a year ago, Jrue Holiday had been traded.  What they got in return, Nerlens Noel was said to be out for the whole season leaving analysts and prognosticators alike (I being one of them) to predict that they wouldn’t win 20 games the entire season.

Fast forward a week and the 76ers are 3-0 with wins over the defending champion Miami Heat, the Chicago Bulls and also the up and coming Washington Wizards.

The Sixers enter the second week of a long season with more answers than anyone could’ve ever imagined.  Does this mean that they are a playoff team?  It’s far too early to answer that question, but we have learned plenty about the young squad after three games.

The first thing is that the NBA isn’t too big for rookie point guard Michael Carter-Williams.  He has been phenomenal so far in all facets of the game.  In their opening game of the season, Carter-Williams showed up in a big way and put the whole league on notice of what he can do.  On that night, MCW registered 22 points on just 10 shots to go along with a staggering line of 12 assists, 7 rebounds and 9 steals.  Over his first three games, Carter-Williams is averaging 20.7 points to go along with 9 assists, 4.7 rebounds and 4.3 steals a game.

He isn’t the only Sixer who has shown flashes of stardom either.  Returning starters Evan Turner, Thaddeus Young and Spencer Hawes have all made massive contributions so far.  Turner is showing why he deserves a big contract in the off-season.  He is leading the team in scoring thus far this season averaging 23 points a night.  Throw in 4.3 rebounds and 4 assists a game and you know why Turner is not too far from getting a big pay-day.

After Young speculated that he might be on his way out, he has given us reason to believe that he should have a long time home in Philadelphia.  Young is averaging more than 17 points a night to go along with 7 rebounds, 2 assists and 1.3 steals.

Hawes has been a beast as well, showing both his inside and outside game and his prowess as a big time rebounder.  Hawes is shooting almost 65 percent from the field and 50 percent from three-point land.  He is averaging more than 19 points a game as well as 11.3 rebounds, 3 assists and 1.3 blocks a game.

The Sixers have also had some nice contributions off the bench thanks in large part to the play of Tony Wroten.

Wroten landed in Philadelphia in the offseason after being traded by the Memphis Grizzles for a conditional second round pick.   Wroten spent much of last season bouncing between the Grizzles and the D-League, but has found a place with the 76ers.  Wroten is averaging 11.7 points, 4.7 rebounds and an assist a game so far in what appears to be a perfect role for him.

While I don’t think that the Sixers are ready to make big time noise this season, they have proven that they have a nice roster to build around.

That’s a far cry from what just about everyone expected when the season started.