The road to becoming a team of consequence in the NBA unfolds in stages. It typically begins with rubble — the broken-down remainder of the previous era, the discarded misfit pieces left strewn about as a franchise starts the process of creating something new.
Then comes a blueprint for the future and, with any luck, a cornerstone talent around which to build. With the plan and the organizing principle in place, the team begins its climb: from emphasizing development and culture to year-over-year on-court improvement; from approaching the playoffs to making the playoffs to winning in the playoffs.