The Philadelphia 76ers' hopes of winning the NBA Championship this season were brought to a grinding halt earlier this week when they were eliminated from the playoffs by the Boston Celtics. Despite the promising players on the roster, they weren't able to live up to the expectation.

Work now begins towards next season, as the Sixers will look to build an even better side to push for not only a better seeding in the Eastern Conference but a better challenge in the postseason for the NBA title as well.

As for how the team can make that title challenge a reality, head coach Brett Brown believes the team definitely needs help if that's the goal which everyone has on their mind.

Brown told reporters at his season-ending news conference according to ESPN: "At some point, when the time is right, I think we need help to win a championship. If that's the goal -- and for me and us it is -- then that's the answer I give."

He also added that the Sixers "have the ability to attract" a top free agent due to the team's style of play, upward trajectory, culture and the market. If they renounce the rights to free agents JJ Redick, Ersan Ilyasova, Marco Belinelli and Amir Johnson, the Sixers could have a projected cap space of $25 million this summer.

However, there are several ways in which the team could increase their cap space to $35.4 million, the amount they would need to sign LeBron James in free agency. Bringing in James would turn the Sixers into a title contender overnight.

When asked if the coaching staff would be opposed to bringing in a ball-dominant free agent to play alongside Ben Simmons, who is at his most effective with the ball in his hands, Brown said they would be able to figure things out.

He said: "If this player you're describing was great, we'd figure it out. Truly. We would figure stuff out. It's as honest and simple as I can answer that."

The Sixers head coach also emphasised that any free agent they bring in would be with Joel Embiid and Simmons in mind, as he said: "For the first time since I've been here, there is tremendous clarity on what we have. We don't have to turn this into calculus -- it's quite clear [what type of player the club should pursue]."

Listen HERE to episode two of the new GiveMeSport NBA podcast, featuring New York Times senior writer Marc Stein.

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