J.J. Redick's range gives Sixers a shot at the playoffs | Bob Brookover

The 76ers do not have a long and distinguished history of signing free agents. In fact, you could say they were zero for this century before they took a couple of  more swings when the market opened again Saturday.

On the first day of free agency, president of basketball operations Bryan Colangelo filled the Sixers' greatest need besides better luck in the health department when he signed shooting guard J.J. Redick. The addition of veteran power forward Amir Johnson was a nice touch, too, but it is Redick who will move into the 76ers' starting lineup and give them the immediate potential to be a playoff team.

Sure, it was exciting when the Sixers moved up to get Markelle Fultz with the No. 1 overall pick, and the idea that Ben Simmons will also join Joel Embiid and Dario Saric next season was always appetizing. But without a shooter and a veteran presence who could make valuable contributions on the court, it was a stretch to think the 76ers could immediately make the playoffs with a teenage point guard and three other guys still in their early 20s.

You could see good things on the horizon based on the spurts of quality basketball the Sixers flashed last season, but it is rare for a roster of NBA newbies to immediately make a playoff reservation, let alone a playoff run. One exception, of course, was Oklahoma City with the trio of Kevin Durant, Russell Westbrook, and James Harden, but the Thunder could not keep that band together.

Now, with the addition of Redick, the 76ers are a team that could even be capable of winning a playoff round. By agreeing to sign a one-year deal worth $23 million and tweeting to the world that he trusts the process, Redick did so many good things for the Sixers.

The 33-year-old Duke product had options to sign two-year deals with the Brooklyn Nets and Minnesota Timberwolves, so the fact that he chose the Sixers provided credibility that a quality league veteran could see something special happening in Philadelphia.

That he chose the Sixers over the Nets is not really a big deal because Brooklyn is New York's budding borough, but its basketball team is still second best in a city that also houses the dysfunctional Knicks. That he chose the Sixers ahead of the Timberwolves is saying a lot because some would argue that Minnesota's cast with Karl-Anthony Towns, Andrew Wiggins, and Jimmy Butler is ahead of the Sixers at this point. Redick felt otherwise.

The main reason the Sixers wanted Redick, of course, was to give them the three-point threat they have lacked forever. Consider this: In the last 22 years, the Sixers have ranked among the top 10 teams in three-point shooting percentage just one time. That was in 2011-12 when Andre Iguodola led them at 39.4 percent. In that same 22-year period, they ranked 20^th or lower 16 times.

Last year, even with some decent long-range shooters, they were tied for 24^th in the league at 34 percent.

The Sixers have not had a player rank in the top 20 in three-point shooting percentage since Kyle Korver was ninth in 2006-07.

In Redick, they get one of the best three-point shooters of all time. He was the best in the league in that department two seasons ago and ranked sixth last season. According to basketballreference.com, he ranks 14^th all-time at 42.9 percent.

The benefit of that shooting prowess is obvious, but maybe he also helps a guy like Nik Stauskas, who showed tremendous improvement from long range a year ago by shooting a career-best 36.8 percent from beyond the arc. Redick did not become a 40 percent shooter from three-point range until his fourth season in the NBA. This will be Stauskas' fourth season.

As mentioned before, the Sixers have other guys — Embiid, Saric, Jerryd Bayless and Robert Covington — who are decent three-point shooters with a chance to improve. They will not immediately become Golden State, San Antonio, or Cleveland in the long-range shooting department, but at least they have a chance to get into the modern NBA game.

Obviously, Redick is not the premier free agent that the Sixers hope to sign some day, but the team's last even moderate hit on the open market was 18 years ago when it signed George Lynch for one season and $565,000. Lynch turned into a perfect role player for the Allen Iverson-led team that reached the NBA Finals. That same year, the Sixers had a big swing and miss with Matt Geiger. When The Process started, Philadelphia became a no man's land for free agency.

Now, the Sixers are back in the game. Redick is unlikely to be around if and when the Sixers take the next step into championship contender, but it's conceivable that he is here for more than a single year. Korver is still going strong at 36 and Redick has the reputation for keeping his body in phenomenal shape. That Redick and Johnson decided to come for even one year is a tremendous sign of progress for a team that has become synonymous with the word process.