Entering the summer with cap space carved out for a star, the 76ers struck out and maintained future cap flexibility. How does their summer affect the upcoming season and next year’s free agency?
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In 2016 the Philadelphia 76ers went 28–54 and they finished 14th in the Eastern Conference and it seemed as though The Process was still not completed. This past season? Everything seemed to click as they totaled 52 wins and finished as the third seed in the Conference. They went on to win their first Playoff series since 2011(when they beat the Chicago Bulls 4–2 in a series that is most remembered for Derrick Rose’s career-altering torn ACL).
They have several young players in Joel Embiid, Ben Simmons and Markelle Fultz, and a very capable coach in Brett Brown. For most, The Process seems to have been completed, the young assets have been compiled and curated, the city is invested in the team now more than ever, and the product on the court is the best it’s been in nearly a decade. Many believe that all that remains for the Sixers is a big piece to get them through the hurdles of the Playoffs where the imposing Boston Celtics loom. With all that in mind, we have to ask: what are the Sixers doing?
Last season they made several additions that turned out to be diamond-in-the-rough type moves. They signed Marco Belinelli after he was waived by the Atlanta Hawks, they added J.J. Redick with a one-year deal from the Los Angeles Clippers, Amir Johnson, Trevor Booker and Irsan Ilyasova as well. In all, they scrounged together a group of players that on paper might not have frightened most, but they got the job done and made it far enough for Philadelphia to see the light at the end of the tunnel. So I ask again, what are they doing?
They entered this off-season with one goal: that final piece. Brown called it “star hunting,” saying that “the whole notion of star hunting, star chasing, star development is at the forefront of everything we do,” Be it LeBron James, Paul George or the unhappy Kawhi Leonard, the Sixers knew they needed a superstar to get to the promised land for the first time since 2000.
So they went ahead and extended one-year contracts to Redick and Johnson, welcomed Wilson Chandler from the Denver Nuggets, and they said goodbye to the rentals Belinelli and Ilyasova — which are both, ironically, headed back to teams they have previously played for (Belinelli goes back to San Antonio where he played from 2013 to 2015, and Ilysova is headed back to Milwaukee, where he played from 2005 to 2007 and then again from 2009 to 2015). They finished off their moves — so far anyways — by adding Minnesota’s Nemanja Bjelica on a one-year contract. None of these players are Kawhi, not even close, but are they good fits in the interim? Let’s look.
Wilson Chandler
The 23rd pick in the 2007 NBA Draft, the swingman from Denver goes to Philadelphia on a trade that also saw a future second-round pick heading to Philly as well. The catch is that Chandler’s contract can be traded almost immediately because Philly had cap room when they got him. Will he stay with the team? Unless a trade for Kawhi Leonard materializes this summer, it’s very likely that Chandler will — in theory — act as a backup wing for Robert Covington. Chandler has the ability to rotate at the forward positions as needed.
The most intriguing part about Chandler is the opportunity for him to challenge Covington for a starting spot. The idea that Covington will have to face-off against a comparable player throughout training camp and practice will force him to either sink or swim.
Last season, Covington averaged 12.6 points, 5.4 rebounds and shot 37 percent from 3-point range while Chandler averaged 10 points, 5.4 rebounds and shot 36-percent from downtown.
Some would say that Covington was Sam Hinkie’s prized possession, but if a player comes along to challenge him who is to say that Chandler can’t overtake the starting role at small forward? They are similar players in terms of being able to provide capable shooting and defense, although Covington excels much more on the defensive end than Chandler does at this stage of his career.
A big differential between the two is the steals per game. Not only does Covington win that category easily (1.7 spg compared to .7) but he also led the league in (for the second year in a row) in deflections per game with 3.9. This all added up to Covington being nominated to the NBA’s All-Defensive First Team for the first time in his career this past season.
Look, any team would be happy to have Covington, he is a solid — some may even say elite — defender and fits the mold for the typical 3-and-D skill player. The problem is — and always has been — his consistency. He started off last season red-hot, shooting 44.5 percent from the field and 41.6 percent from long range. This — along with other factors to be sure — led to him signing a four-year $62 million extension. After that signing? He regressed back to his norm of mid-30 percent from deep and low-40 percent from the field. The worst for Covington came in the Playoffs when he shot 32.5 percent from the field and 31.3 percent from deep to go along with 8.1 points per game and the end result of being benched for TJ McConell.
Chandler was traded from Denver in order to shed his $12.8 million contract as well as to offer an extension (and starting spot) to Will Barton, but the Sixers can utilize him to bring competition to the small forward position and add another piece to an already deep team. We hear talks about teams and “position battles” all the time, and while it usually revolves around the QB in football, if the 76ers play this correctly, it could apply to them as well.
Nemanja Bjelica
Bjelica was the 35th overall pick in the 2010 draft and saw his first NBA minutes in 2015 as part of the Minnesota Timberwolves. Since then he has averaged 19 minutes a game and low averages of six points and 3.8 rebounds per game. So why sign him? Because the 6'10 forward from Serbia is the perfect player to bring in to fill the void left by Ilyasova leaving. Ilyasova averaged 24 minutes, 10.8 points and 6.7 rebounds in his time as a Sixer, and was a crucial role player coming off the bench. His 36 percent clip from 3-point range kept defenses honest, and when paired with Belinelli and Redick, formed a trio of long-ball shooters that cold either help give the Sixers a spark to get back into a game, or keep them ahead while the starters rested.
Bjelica has the size, range (41.5 percent from deep) and the mobility to be the next Ilyasova for Philadelphia. He will be a bench player who comes in to rest the likes of Embiid or Dario Saric, and can be rotated to play at center if the Sixers choose to play small ball. Like Ilyasova, Bjelica will be signed to a one-year contract (worth $4.4 million) and is currently listed as Saric’s backup, making his fit very conventional and understanding from a Sixers perspective.
Amir Johnson and JJ Redick
Not much needs to be written about these two, being that they will be returning for another season in Philly. Both were re-signed to one-year deals, and their veteran presence — along with Redick being the only reliable shooter in the starting five — will be huge for the Sixers going forward.
Johnson, 31, will be entering his 14th season in the NBA and will bring the same mentality to the Sixers that won him the 2018 NBA Hustle Award (an award that honors the players whose contributions don’t always show up in the box score).
Redick, 34, will be returning to Philadelphia for his 13th season in the league. Say what you will about youth, but the importance and value of veteran leadership cannot be undersold when Philadelphia’s three biggest names are all under the age of 25.
However, there is a possibility that the 76ers add to their current roster, so let’s take a look at a couple big names and the situations they face moving forward.
Carmelo Anthony
Philadelphia Sports’ flagship radio station (94.1) did a poll the other day asking listeners if they wanted Carmelo Anthony to join the 76ers. 85 percent of the 4,323 voters said no. Who can blame them? Anthony is known for a few things: lackadaisical — maybe even non-existent — defense, isolation ball and a me-first locker room mentality. Does any of that sound like what the Sixers need? Sure the Sixers need a reliable wing scorer, but the idea that they would go out and sign a player who would refuse to come off the bench — just ask Oklahoma City how that conversation went — , and slow the ball down to a halt despite the Sixers capitalizing on ball movement and spacing is ludicrous. If ‘Melo agreed to a league minimum and a sixth-man role then maybe Philly should show some interest, but he won’t so they shouldn’t.
He is the type of scorer Philadelphia might need, but not the one they want, and if they are considering going after him they should simply wait until next season and go after free-agents like Kawhi Leonard or Jimmy Butler. Carmelo isn’t the piece to get Philadelphia past Boston, or the Warriors, so they should save themselves the time, money and headaches and simply let Houston take the reigns on this one.
Kawhi Leonard
Still waiting on this one. We have a long time until the trade deadline so not all hope is lost, but there have been very few serious reports about attempts on either side to get the disgruntled star out of San Antonio. For a team that has had their coach say “At some point, when the time is right, I think we need help to win a championship,” and said that the team needs to add a “high-level” free agent, you would think that the push for Kawhi would be the most important thing going on in Philadelphia right now.
For now, it appears the Sixers are content with running things back this season with a few minor tweaks to their depth. With their young core continuing to improve and cap space being available next summer, look for the 76ers to truly strike in the summer of 2019, filling that final piece of a championship-contender puzzle.
Statistics courtesy of Basketball Reference.