While the Sixers made headlines for suffering their tenth straight defeat as they wallow in the abyss of the Eastern Conference, Chuma Okeke, who left the club over a week ago, reportedly agreed to a 10-day deal to join the Cleveland Cavaliers, according to ESPN’s Shams Charania.
The Sixers signed Chuma Okeke in their bid to ease their depth struggles and mitigate the impact of the injury crises that have captioned the most parts of their season.
Between the months of February and March, Okeke had two 10-day stints with the Philadelphia 76ers. The first was quite unlike what he would have hoped for, as he featured for just two minutes in his Sixers debut, where they lost to the Detroit Pistons. For the rest of his 10-day deal, Okeke registered no other appearance before returning to the G League.
His second 10-day deal in March saw far more action as he played in six games, starting in three. Okeke averaged 8.0 points, 7.0 rebounds, and 2.2 assists while shooting 54.5% from the floor and 45.5% from deep.
Now, Okeke will continue his NBA comeback season with the top-seeded Cleveland Cavaliers, who, at 61-15, hold a commanding five-game lead over the second-seeded Boston Celtics as the curtains of the regular season draw to a close.
The Sixers had the option to either sign Okeke to a deal for the rest of the season or allow him to walk. Due to the cap ramifications of signing him to a standard NBA deal, the Sixers allowed Okeke to walk, and now he finds himself playing for a contender, at least for the next ten days.
To replace Okeke, the Sixers signed Maine Celtics forward Philip Wheeler from the G League in a similar 10-day deal, who has averaged 1.6 points and 1.6 rebounds in five games played.
On the night Chuma Okeke’s deal was announced, Philadelphia lost to the Milwaukee Bucks 126-113 in their tenth straight loss. Despite leading 39-25 after one quarter, the Sixers slipped off, allowing the Bucks to come back in the next three quarters to extend their record to 42-34.
The injuries of Tyrese Maxey, Joel Embiid, Paul George, and others have kept the Sixers at 3-25 since Feb. 5. It’s clear Okeke is onto brighter pastures, albeit on a relatively short stint. Up next, the Sixers host the Minnesota Timberwolves as they search for their first win since March 16th.
