The Philadelphia 76ers are turning this season around, and the fanbase has, for the first time this season, started to build some optimism regarding the big three of Paul George, Tyrese Maxey, and Joel Embiid. However, carrying only 14 players into the season, considering The Sixers’ injury woes so far, it may be in their best interest to turn their attention to the current free-agent pool.
With an open roster spot, an open two-way spot, and the ability to sign players to 10-day contracts, here are some guys the Sixers may want to look at who may just be able to help a team win.
Lonnie Walker IV
Lonnie Walker is someone the Sixers were connected to in late December, and with the new year starting, the Sixers are sure to remain interested. Walker, the former 18th overall pick in the 2018 draft, started the season with the Boston Celtics but was waived before the regular season. In the preseason, Walker appeared in four games for the Celtics, shooting 42.8% from the field and averaging 7.2 points per game. His best game came against the Toronto Raptors, where he played in 30 minutes and scored 20 points, making four of his nine threes.
Lonnie has since signed with Žalgiris Kaunas, a EuroLeague team that also competes in the Lithuanian Basketball League. Since signed overseas, Lonnie has averaged 14.4 points per game, shooting 36.9% on three-pointers. He has recently been connected to the 76ers, Miami Heat, Boston Celtics, Minnesota Timberwolves, and the Denver Nuggets, according to Marc Stein. Should Walker be signed by an NBA team, he would need to be bought out from his current team before February 18. While Walker would bring another scorer into the Sixers rotation, because of his current contract, he would almost certainly need a guaranteed deal to come back to the NBA this season.
Markelle Fultz
A Markelle Fultz homecoming would truly be something to behold. The former number 1 overall pick in the 2017 NBA draft has played for two teams in his career. The Philadelphia 76ers, who drafted him and eventually traded him away, and the Orlando Magic, the team that worked to develop him into a NBA player. While Fultz never lived up to his draft pedigree, it would have a certain level of poetry to it if he returned to Philadelphia and played well enough to earn rotation minutes and help the Sixers make a playoff push.
With Jared McCain‘s injury and Kyle Lowry currently dealing with a hip injury, the Sixers guard rotation could use some help. Last season for the Magic Fultz appeared in 43 games, starting in 18 of them. 7.8 points, 2.8 assists, and 1.0 steals per game while playing in over 20 minutes a night. The former Washington point guard has developed into a slashing, defensive-minded point guard who can often guard the other team’s on-court ball handler at a high level.
The issues with Fultz begin with his health concerns. Fultz has struggled with injuries his entire career, appearing in more than 40 games only three times in his career. While Fultz won’t fix all of the Sixers’s issues in the guard rotation, and could certainly prove to be a health risk, he would provide another stable defensive presence for Nick Nurse to call on when needed and warrants a 10-day contract.
Oshae Brissett
Oshae Brissett, after playing 55 games for the championship winning Boston Celtics last season decided to test his value in the free agent market, declining his 2.5 million dollar player option with the team. That decision has yet to fully pay off as of when this was written. For the Celtics he averaged 3.7 points and 2.9 rebounds in around 11 minutes a game. He also shot 44.4% from the field while playing both small forward and power forward.
Brissett, 26, is still unsigned and can definitely impact a winning basketball team, as we saw last season in Boston. He appeared in 10 of the Celtics’ 19 playoff games and provided some much-needed energy and grit to the Celtics bench. While he didn’t play much in the postseason, he was always ready to contribute whenever needed. In Game 2 of the Eastern Conference Championship Brissett played in 12 minutes, securing 3 rebounds and 3 steals in a win. Brissett also got some runs in that series in a small ball lineup that proved highly effective. While Brissett isn’t a game changer, his positive energy off the court, as well as his toughness on the court could make Brissett a valuable asset on the Sixers.
What this means for the Sixers’ season
While this Sixers squad has yet to live up to their potential and their payroll thus far into the season, the Sixers have been carrying this open roster spot for a reason. With all of the injuries faced this year and a need to improve their season, Philadelphia may just look to the free-agent pool for a potential injection of energy into a roster that has recently started performing exceedingly well. While none of these guys are going to single-handedly carry you to a championship, they are each proven commodities with enough talent to make a difference.
Mandatory Credit: Brian Fluharty-Imagn Images
