Projecting Each Philadelphia 76ers Player's Minutes Per Game in 2012-13

The Philadelphia 76ers made a lot of changes to their roster this past offseason, so it will be interesting to see how many minutes each Sixer plays next season.

The 76ers' starting five has yet to be announced by coach Doug Collins, so here is a projection of the starters for opening day: Jrue Holiday, Jason Richardson, Evan Turner, Spencer Hawes and Andrew Bynum. 

If this lineup isn't performing up to expectations, look for Collins to tweak the starters as the season goes along. 

Playing time is a big deal to NBA players. In order to manage the 76ers' team chemistry, Coach Collins must do his best to keep all of his players happy.

Andrew Bynum

2011-2012 Minutes Per Game: 35 (L.A. Lakers)

2012-2013 Minutes Per Game Projection: 38

Andrew Bynum was the 76ers' marquee acquisition of the offseason. He has the potential to be the best Sixers center since Moses Malone. Bynum will clearly be the Sixers' starting center whenever he is fully recovered from non-invasive knee surgery.

Last season, Spencer Hawes started at the 5 and averaged just under 25 minutes per game. Look for Bynum to see significantly more minutes than that for the 2012-2013 squad. 

Jrue Holiday

2011-2012 Minutes Per Game: 33.8

2012-2013 Minutes Per Game: 35

Jrue Holiday has been talked about as a breakout star for the 2012-2013 season, and deservedly so. He has all the potential in the world—he is very quick, has supreme athleticism and is a good shooter. However, he has yet to put his talents on full display. 

The 76ers showed Holiday their faith in him when they decided not to resign Lou Williams and didn't pursue a veteran backup point guard in free agency. Essentially, the Sixers said that Holiday is the team's point guard and they have complete faith in his ability to produce.

Evan Turner

2011-2012 Minutes Per Game: 26.4

2012-2013 Minutes Per Game: 28

Evan Turner finally got his wish—he was the 76ers' starting shooting guard for the majority of last season. Turner performed pretty well but definitely needs to make major strides next season to prove that he was worth the No. 2 overall selection back in 2010. 

Turner will see increased minutes due to the fact that Andre Iguodala was traded in the offseason. 

Jason Richardson

2011-2012 Minutes Per Game: 29.5 (Orlando Magic)

2012-2013 Projected Minutes Per Game: 26

A throw-in to the Andrew Bynum trade, Jason Richardson is a solid veteran shooting guard. Although he no longer has the elite athleticism that made him a two-time slam dunk contest champion, he is still a decent athlete that can shoot the three-pointer effectively.

The Sixers attempted just 5.3 three-pointers per game last year, 24th in the NBA. The additions of Richardson, Dorell Wright and Nick Young should improve the team in that aspect. Richardson is slated as the starting shooting guard going into the preseason, so he should see some quality minutes.

Last year, Turner was the 76ers' starting shooting guard and averaged 26.4 minutes, so Richardson should see a similar amount of playing time.

Spencer Hawes

2011-2012 Minutes Per Game: 24.9

2012-2013 Minutes Per Game: 23

Spencer Hawes had his best season as a professional for the Philadelphia 76ers last year, but he can definitely still improve on both ends of the floor.

Hawes was often overmatched when he attempted to guard some of the better centers in the NBA, which led Sixers president Rod Thorn to go out and get both Andrew Bynum and Kwame Brown in the offseason.

Coach Doug Collins has since moved Hawes to power forward in hopes that he will be able to matchup better with 4s on the defensive end. Hawes should expect to see similar minutes to last season if he stays healthy for most of the year. 

Thaddeus Young

2011-2012 Minutes Per Game: 27.9

2012-2013 Projected Minutes Per Game: 26

Thaddeus Young is widely regarded as one of the top bench players in the entire NBA. In fact, he was ninth in scoring for players who did not start the majority of their teams' games. 

The only issue with Young's game is that he does not have a clear-cut position. He can play small forward but really isn't a good enough three-point shooter. He can play power forward but struggles to defend physical post players. 

However, Young is still an extremely productive player and should see playing time similar to last season.

Lavoy Allen

2011-2012 Minutes Per Game: 15.2

2012-2013 Projected Minutes Per Game: 23

Lavoy Allen was taken with the 50th overall selection in the 2011 draft by the Philadelphia 76ers. He turned out to be a steal, as he was a valuable contributor when coach Doug Collins called on him.

Allen did a miraculous job guarding Kevin Garnett during the Eastern Conference semifinals and even showed some flashes of his improving offensive game. He was rewarded for his play by receiving a two-year contract extension worth $6 million.

Due to both his terrific postseason play and his new contract, expect Allen to see increased minutes next season.

Nick Young

2011-2012 Minutes Per Game: 27.9 (Washington Wizards/ L.A. Clippers)

2012-2013 Projected Minutes Per Game: 22

Nick Young is a talented scorer who played for a bad team for most of his career. During his time with the Wizards, it was acceptable for him to take a lot of shots because there was little talent around him.

However, when he was sent to the Clippers at last year's trade deadline, he was forced to cut back on his shots.

Obviously, his production went down with fewer minutes and fewer shots. Young can expect to play a similar role with the 76ers to the one he had with the Clippers. He will be a bench player that is expected to come in with energy and knock down three-pointers. 

Expect Collins to use Young much like he used Lou Williams last season.

Dorell Wright

2011-2012 Minutes Per Game: 27

2012-2013 Projected Minutes Per Game: 19

Dorell Wright is another shooter who the Philadelphia 76ers signed this offseason. He spent the last two seasons with the Golden State Warriors. 

Two years ago, Wright led the entire NBA in three-pointers made with 194. The 76ers expect Wright to come off the bench and be an instant scoring threat.

Wright should see similar minutes to what sharp shooter Jodie Meeks saw last season.

Kwame Brown

2011-2012 Minutes Per Game: 20.8 (Golden State Warriors)

2012-2013 Projected Minutes Per Game: 16

The former No. 1 overall selection, its safe to say that Kwame Brown has experienced a disappointing career. However, Brown has been a solid backup center in the past, and his former and current coach Doug Collins expects nothing less from him this season.

Brown will be expected to come off the bench for the 76ers and compete both defensively and on the glass. Both Hawes and Bynum have had troubles with injuries in the past, so Brown will be needed to step in and contribute.

Maalik Wayns

2011-2012 Minutes Per Game: N/A

2012-2013 Projected Minutes Per Game: 9

A Philadelphia native, rookie point guard Maalik Wayns has been impressing coach Doug Collins in training camp, according to reports. Going off these reports, it is expected that Wayns will make the Sixers' roster over veteran point guard Royal Ivey.

Although Wayns and Jrue Holiday may be the only point guards on the roster, do not expect coach Doug Collins to play the rookie often. Instead, look for Evan Turner to play the point when Holiday is on the bench.

Arnett Moultrie

2011-2012 Minutes Per Game: N/A

2012-2013 Projected Minutes Per Game: 5

The Miami Heat selected Arnett Moultrie with the 27th pick in the 2012 NBA draft. He was later traded to the Philadelphia 76ers for a future draft pick. Moultrie is a project and it should be a few years before he is expected to contribute on a nightly basis.

On last year's Sixers team, Moultrie would likely step right into the NBA and receive decent minutes. However, this season's Sixers team is much deeper than last year's squad. For that reason, Moultrie will only see minutes at the end of games or if someone goes down with an injury.

On the bright side, he too was mentioned as a player that has been impressing coach Doug Collins in this Philly.com article.

Follow @jschaeffer3