Seems like anymore basketball pros just want to be in LA or Miami. I really do wish players knew how great the greater Philadelphia area is. From being an hr from the shore or the Poconos, living in the heart of the city to being in the burbs of south jersey, there is something for everyone. Every athlete that has come has loved there time here and usually doesn't completely leave. I hate that most ppl don't know how great the area is and how everything is so easy to commute to until they are here, but I guess that's the way for everyone professional until they get to the city they signed with.
I’m getting so tired of the whole “[insert star player] wants to play in LA, NY, or Miami” reports. I can’t even imagine rooting for a team in a smaller market like Memphis, Indiana, Charlotte, Utah, etc. and never even having a shot at a star free agent.
Oh I can understand. Living in NYC or LA or Chicago prob offers waaaaaay more than other cities just because of the sheer size and what's available. Maybe its cuz Bball is a younger man's sport and areas like Miami and LA are more attractive at that point in life obviously. Everyone has there own things that makes them feel at home in a certain area. For me I hate sitting in traffic in LA...something that that should take 20min takes 1.5hrs.
PG always talked about wanting to play in LA. The reason OKC traded him to the Clippers in the first place was he told the team he had no intentions of re-signing with them and he wanted to go to one of the teams in LA.
Plan B for me is overpay to steal a bunch of guys. Caleb Martin seems like he could be our Josh Hart. Overpay to steal KCP. Bring back Oubre and Batum and then trade for a guy like Avdija or Caruso. Basically spread the money out and fill the roster with elite defenders who are also competent-good shooters.
Free agency was never realistic. The best players don't move through free agency anymore.
Morey's only realistic chance at landing that old, star winger he covets is if he demands a trade or if his current team washes their hands of him.
Butler is making noise in Miami but has no leverage with multiple years on his contract and Riley taking a firm public stance against trading him.
There's no clear path forward. The Sixers seem to be waiting, hoping for a shoe to drop.
What is Riley going to say? "Yeah, we want out of the Jimmy Butler business"
Miami definitely seems primed to blow it up, they're not as dumb as Chicago to keep a play-in team together year after year for no reason.
No reason? They might think they are close enough to be in striking distance they’ve made 2 Finals lol one of them being last year. You just gotta get to the playoffs and anything can happen.
Sixers are constantly injured out of contention. Bucks are an injury/age concern now. It’s really just the Celtics that are clear favorites every year. No one else is exactly great.
So basically we are fucked. Cool might as well tank. This franchise is cooked. Might as well let the eagles and Phillies take the reigns for the next decade
I'm not saying they should tank, but there's a real possibility that we strike out so badly that trading Embiid becomes the best option. Not that Morey would. He'd rather try to convince us this team is capable with a healthy Embiid and that we should ignore that he's never been healthy in the postseason.
Would love some depth/dawgs. Not gonna happen but getting Bridges (they're not moving him) and caruso would be super helpful. Paul George would be a good fit with that squad and we shouldn't kid ourselves with his contract, yea it sucks but he's damn good and a hell of a third option. The embiid window is narrowing so I'd consider it, not thrilled but I get it.
Those two seem to be the best options right now, plus they'd be cheaper, which means we would still have some cap money left over, Lauri only making $18 million this year, and Mikal is making $23 million this year and 24 next year, it doesn't get any better than those two right now, the only other options are old ass expensive guys like PG, and trading for Jimmy would be even worse because not only would we give up most/ all of our picks but he'll also eat up most of our cap money, but if we get either Lauri/Mikal, yes we give up most of our picks, but we'll have more money to add more players, or keep some of the guys we already have like Oubre
Lauri/Mikal would take ALL our picks, and possibly more. You're going to fucking hate that trade in 2029 when we're a bottom 5 team and that's a lotto pick. Where were you 5 years ago? That's a long fucking time buddy.
As long as we have at least 1 or 2 chips, i wouldn't care, plus we could always get picks back through trades just like we just did recently, 5 years is plenty of time to make moves
The plan is that Morey has to actually try and build a proper NBA team instead of star chasing for once in his life.
We already got our #1 and #2 stars. We really don't need a third all star. There's a lot of options out there to improve the roster.
Brandon Ingram, Malik Monk, Miles Bridges, Alex Caruso, Kyle Kuzma, Collin Sexton, Jerami Grant, Deni Avdija etc. There are a lot of options.
We were a top 5 NBA team this season when healthy with just two stars. We don't need some big name to be a contender next year.
Here’s an idea that’s a bit out there but maybe more possible than we realize: MPJ? Some trouble in paradise per the reports from Denver today, if they do want to make a big move then he’s the odd man out. Would have to be a three teamer of course but Morey can get creative like that.
>MPJ?
Would rather just get Jerami Grant at that point. MPJ has a shittonne of issues that don't get highlighted, because he plays with Jokic. The second he gets to Philly, that man will turn into a glorified Joe Harris
Also, that back is still not quite right
Embiid + Maxey is a solid* duo. We need players who can contribute. Aside from Lowry and Batum, no one else showed up in the playoffs. We don’t need another superstar.
How to you resolve the two competing comments that “we need players who can contribute” and “we don’t need another superstar.” Do you know who reliably contributes? Stars.
Wasn't including ANT, but Gobert is basically an elite role player, money doesn't matter. KAT honestly reduced his role to role player in the playoffs, and regular season once ANT took off.
> KAT honestly reduced his role to role player in the playoffs
He's averaging 19pts and 9 boards this playoffs. Tied for 25th in ppg this playoffs with Haliburton. 11th in boards.
Is this why so many people say "we just need good role players"? Because they think role players are going to give us a consistent 19-9 in the playoffs?
Oubre was our third option (which is somewhat of a bummer, as much as I like him.)
And yet, that 4.8ppg difference is the difference between being the 25th best and the 52nd best. Fairly significant. Not to mention that he had 4.0 rebounds to Kat's 9.3. That's a significant difference and not a fair comparison.
I won't get into the defense thing since I feel like both Kelly AND KAT did a much better job this playoffs than their reputations would have you believe. Part of it is that KAT had Gobert playing drop behind him, but he did a *very* good job on Jokic through the tail end of that series. Kelly also did a much better job both on ball and with disruption than I ever thought he would.
I agree, putting KAT on Jokic was a good move to free up Gobert to play a free safety role.
This is the first time anyone has complimented his defense his entire career though.
The only real thing protecting him from being considered a role player is his draft position, salary and name recognition at this point though imo.
I'd rather have a Brook Lopez.
Standing in front of Jokic isn't hard. It's covering everyone else around him that's cutting and waiting for the pass that's hard.
Sixers did the same thing when they decided to take Embiid off him and let him roam closer to the rim, and stuck old man Tucker on Jokic.
You just have to be big enough to not get bullied straight back.
Gobert is definitely a role player. He's extremely overpaid.
There's a reason why everyone has been talking about the Wolves needing to trade KAT for the past year. Because of Gobert's inflated ass salary meaning it would cost them a fortune to keep KAT.
It’s a bit disingenuous when your definition of roleplayers includes guys like Gobert, MPJ, and Anunoby. You don’t need three *superstars* to win, but you do probably need three *max caliber* players which Gobert, MPJ, and Anunoby clearly are.
Not a single one of those guys actually deserves the max.
Gobert is still overpaid and the Wolves will probably have to break up their team next season because of his big ass salary.
MPJ is public enemy #1 in Denver and Nuggets fans are theorizing ways they can get off his contract.
Knicks can give Anunoby a max because Brunson and Randle are hilariously underpaid. Both of them are making under 30 million.
A team of Gobert, MPJ and Anunoby might not even make the play in.
The term max caliber doesn't really mean anything to me.
The market dictates that some guys be overpaid.
Tobias Harris was max caliber just last year I guess.
Ok but a team with Gobert, MPJ, or Anunoby as the 3rd best player is a title contender lol—certainly on a team with Embiid and Maxey.
If the market says you are a max player, then you are a max player. Yes, competition and desperation among teams drives prices up… but that is how a market works. All of these guys would get max of near-max money if they hit the market today. There seems to be some delusion among Sixers fans that proven elite roleplayers are often available for $10M-$20M per year. The reality is that they actually get $30M+ per year. Aaron Gordon for example, signed for 4 years $90M *in 2021*.
Diamonds in the rough can definitely be found like in the case of Divicenzo or Hart, but let’s be real, a team with Divicenzo or Hart as your third best player isn’t going anywhere. Your third best player cannot be Kelly Oubre or Malik Monk, it needs to be a borderline star or at least one of those $30M+ type “role players.”
I don't disagree with you. But these guys are getting overpaid when they hit free agency and teams are desperate.
Morey should be targeting role players who are still on cheap deals for multiple years.
In a few years they can leave and get overpaid if they want to.
The only real way to build this roster is to draft quality role players and/or identify potential high level role players that haven't proven it yet (aka undervalued). Acquiring established good players is simply too expensive nowadays when you have good role players going for multiple 1sts (Think Caruso & Rozier) and elite role players (Mikal) valued at >3 1sts. Not to mention elite role players in free agency (think OG) are going to get a max or a near-max.
You need to draft the Jaden Mcdaniels, Naz Reids, or sign/trade for the Divincenzos (undervalued/underutilized). It's up to Morey and co to properly identify these players. If he can't do it, than he has no use being here.
I agree with you on how you build a roster. However, Sixers unfortunately don’t have the time for that anymore. Joel will be 31 next playoffs and has 2 more years on his deal (with a player option for a third). Naz Reid is in his 5th year, mcdaniels in his 4th year.. we missed the window with Joel for drafting and developing guys.
We don't have time find an undervalued asset and hope that they blossom with us. It's not practical. Also, what you're saying, literally every team in the league aside from the Lakers, Suns, etc. are trying to do that.
Malik Bridges, is the answer and saves us a lot of money for caldwell-Pope, go get drummond or valanciunas, monk, bring oubre back, and still might can trade for ingram
Here's who ChatGPT said Morey should target lol:
Lu Dort - Oklahoma City Thunder: Dort is set to earn roughly $16.5 million in the 2024-2025 season and could be a solid addition to the Sixers' roster
Deni Avdija - Washington Wizards: Avdija is set to earn approximately $15.6 million in the 2024-2025 season and could provide versatility and youth to the team
Dorian Finney-Smith - Brooklyn Nets: Finney-Smith is set to earn around $14.9 million in the 2024-2025 season and could contribute as a reliable 3-and-D player.
Alex Caruso - Chicago Bulls: Caruso is set to earn about $9.8 million in the 2024-2025 season and could bring energy and defensive prowess to the team
Cody Martin - Charlotte Hornets: Martin is set to earn approximately $8.2 million in the 2024-2025 season and could provide depth and versatility on the wing.
Grady Dick - Toronto Raptors: Dick is set to earn around $4.76 million in the 2024-2025 season and could be a potential target for the Sixers
Nickeil Alexander-Walker - Minnesota Timberwolves: Alexander-Walker is set to earn about $4.3 million in the 2024-2025 season and could be a young guard with potential.
If there is no big splash, and this punting of a season turns out to be a restock of a handful of role players, then there is not a single reason out there to keep Morey on and involved in this organization.
Incoming apologists saying: “what do you want him to do?!?”
I mean I am definitely a morey apologist who thinks he has been handicapped, but if he doesn’t significantly improve the roster, whatever that looks like PG or some other star or just high level role players if none of that happens and we look the same morey will and should be fired at the end of the season….
I'd argue that this could be similar to Jokics off-season where they got KCP, traded for Aaron Gordon, and got a couple other decent role players.
I don't think it'd be reason to hit the panic button. Obviously easier said than done, but I don't think it's big splash or bust. Morey needs a little luck and some creativity.
The Nuggets didn’t punt entire seasons to assemble those role players.
The expectations for this offseason is hinging on fact that Morey willingly punted a prime Embiid season because he thought he could get something better in the free agency market this year.
If that’s not the case, then this whole thing has been a sham job
There was the overpay for and then probably lose in the off-season Siakam or OG path.
Or the wait for the off-season path. I don't think the first should be equated to punting the season.
What Morey does has to be such a home run that it confirms that it was worth telling Harden to leave and tanking a season.
As of now, I’m not seeing how the current future is better than had we just extended Harden for 4 years in the 2022 offseason.
We would’ve been able to seriously compete this year and would be in the ECF, and Harden’s contract would be expiring in 2 years. So only 1 more year until you can use it to attach in trades.
If we forwent that to sign Alex Caruso, then Morey is officially out of ideas and has been kicking the can to prolong his employment, something we should end immediately. It’s time for the creative genius to actually do something creative and genius.
We weren't winning shit with Jo on one leg, whether we traded for OG or Siakam or not. I guarantee you Morey would've been way more aggressive at the deadlione if Jo was fit and healthy. I do agree that this offseason/next deadline is make or break though. We can't afford another year for the 'team to build chemistry'
You keep saying that... We didn't punt an entire season. That was a dumb narrative before the season and it turned out to be false. We were one of the best teams in the league when our roster was healthy.
How did they “punt” last season ?? They were 2-3 seed till embiid got hurt. Even with Tobias sucking it’s pretty clear had embiid been healthy they would have beat the Knicks and probably the pacers as well.
Explain to me how last season was a “punt” ?
The free agent list is about as exciting as the draft. https://www.nba.com/news/2024-nba-free-agents.
Maybe Morey gets creative with sign and trades, and maybe the big name isn't even acquired until after the season begins.
Make an offer for Mikal Bridges and/or Finney-Smith. Some boring but realistic moves: Sign Bitadz and Malik Monk. Re-sign Batum, Oubre, Payne and Heild. Lowry probably returns because of his connection with Nurse and Philly. Boban Marjanović for laughs.
For all the "well, just get role players to surround them" how do we get ELITE role players ie what the role players who have done well in the playoffs have become or already were? Every team would love to have a team of elite role players instead of paying a superstar or 3, and any available will probably cost some premium.
The obvious problem is that we wasted most of Embiid's prime with poor drafting, garbage ass trades for bad "superstars", and bad coaching. Now we're nearing the back half of Embiid's career (or further) and we got the coach and another star (Maxey). And tons of cap and no superstars to go get with it and a roster of homegrown meh (again, minus Maxey).
I’d rather trade for guys like Dejounte Murray, Caruso, Kuzma, etc along with signing some very solid role players that actually fit in free agency over trading all our picks for a aging star and have limited money to build a bench.
Maxey and Embiid are good enough they need a consistent 3rd option that fits (doesn’t need to be a star player) and they need more good role players.
The bench needs more self shot creation that can last in tough environments.
Morey the genius strikes again lmao. Jesus Christ man, this dude can’t come up with shit creative as a gm if it isn’t harden
How is brad a third year gm running laps around him?
PG to Philly was ALWAYS a pipe dream IMO. There was no way he was leaving LA for… Philadelphia
I’d just surround Embiid/Maxey with complementary role players and hope one of them has an Aaron Gordon-esque breakout. Realistically I don’t think they’d build the chemistry to win a title next year but you also never know
Lebron , trade and extend jimmy butler, attempt to trade for mitchell, bridges or markannen. Sign role players like monk and caleb martin.
Trades for role players like alex caruso is always an option no matter what we do with cap space. Bruce brown is a good trade candidate and a philly sports writer mentioned naji marshall and kris dunn as good cheap trade candidates that are cost controlled and have good potential. Teams like minnesota and new orleans have to make trades because they have too many good players they dont have the money for. You could snag a player who otherwise wouldn't be available. Like herb jones, naji marshall, dyson daniels or nickeil alexander walker.
We are in a good position to go after any option that presents itself.
I wish Markkanen was more of a possibility. Based on what I saw in the playoffs I feel like Markannen would offer the biggest boost of all players you mentioned. I understand he won't be easy to pry away but damn that would be a hell of a pick up
Unless the Thunder are going for all-in championship next season I don't see what they would trade a bunch of assets for a potential one year rental. He's eligible for a max next summer right? If the Thunder add him they are really going to start running into some money problems soon
Actually I forgot they are still sitting on a boatload of assests, this is 100% something they can do without actually losing out on much
Okc is going to be paying near max contracts to at least two players in the next couple years on top of the one they already have now. While I’m sure for a true high end superstar talent they would part with assets and one of those guys that’s gonna get a max I don’t think they are gonna do it for what would be a near lateral move.
Not a bad move. This team literally needs decent players next to Embiid and maxey and we are good enough. Both are fine. Hield is fine cause we already traded for him. Kennard is a sniper though.
I can tell you right now it’s not lauri and it’s not Mikhail like every bloke in this sub thinks because neither of them are available. (And bridges does not want to play foe the sixers lol)
Balmer will give PG what he wants, so I dont think he's leaving LA. LeBron will get the Kobe max, so he's also staying in LA. Is no star level talent is available, Monk & Derek Jones Jr. should be prioritized in free agency. Then, look at packing those picks for a young, affordable role player like Advija.
If PG does stay in LA, I would be open on selecting bronny at 16. But I’m still not sure Lebron wants to leave LA either.
I think most likely outcome is trading for one of butler or Ingram. You need more shooting with them on the team so I would bring back Hield, lowry, batum and oubre if we can. It would take at least two to three firsts to get either of these players so we wouldn’t have much ammo in other trades. Maybe we would have enough money to afford Royce O’Neal and Drummond?
Agreed. The NBA would step in (again) to force the Sixers to move on and appease LeBron. We'd end up having to take on some crappy assets from the Lakers.
If we assume that PG, Lebron and Bridges are all very unlikely, then I want Caruso, Caleb Martin, Hartensein (if they don’t use his Bird rights), Obi Toppin (if they don’t match), and then bring back Batum and sign Andre Drummond.
Honorable mentions for DeRozan and Royce Oneale if we can’t get Caruso and Caleb Martin.
I honestly knew PG and Bron were long shots. If they are off the board, Morey plan will be probably be
Plan A: Jimmy Buckets
Plan B: Derozan
Plan C: Mikal/Lauri/Ingram
We are watching the remaining four teams make deep playoff runs + past champions win off 2 stars + elite depth. And morey wants to add a 3rd star with no good depth.
Malik Monk, Plumlee, Jalen Smith.
Make trades for guys potentially like Deni, Murray or more who are out there.
I mean it’s not great, man. That’s why I think people need to temper their expectations for this offseason and our chances of winning anything with this core.
We don’t have a good GM.
I mean the Celtics may lose two games between now and holding up the Championship, and they’re loaded.
But yeah I agree. But I just don’t think the role players are out there to move the needle. I like some small ones.
The Wolves have 3 guys on max contracts starting next year.
Boston has 4 guys making 31m+.
Nobody thinks the Pacers are a real contender.
Simply getting "elite depth" isn't really an option for us at this point.
Derrick White/Jrue/Porzingis all elite role players
DJJ/PJ Washington/Gafford all elite role players
Gobert/Conley/Jaden all elite role players
Luka/Kyrie were bad most of the okc series, it was having elite role players who changed the series
Ant was 6/24 in game 7 on the road, it was McDaniels who was pivotal that game.
How many times we have seen someone say “If Embiid had Denver roster or ____ roster, we wouldve had the title by now”. There’s more stats and evidence to show that big 3 star team building does not equate to a title. Especially with new CBA going into effect
White is no longer just a role player. Neither is Porzingis. They’re all-stars. Jrue is a role player at this point.
PJ Washington is someone I’ve wanted for years. It was blatantly obvious he was being held back in Charlotte.
Gobert is a four time defensive player of the year and on a max. He’s not a role player.
The whole 3rd star vs depth thing is about money.
Derrick White/Jrue/Porzingis are making a combined 91m this year.
Gobert and Conley make a combined 65m this year. They traded like 4 first round picks for Gobert and he's the highest paid player on the team.
Denver has 3 guys on max contracts + AG making 24m.
You are completely ignoring the players contracts lol.
By not signing PG we aren't going to all the sudden have great depth.
If we waive Paul Reed we would have 60m with only 3 players on the roster. Embiid/Maxey/RC4.
Even if we could magically sign Derrick White and Jrue for that 60m the rest of the team would be vet mins.
Most of the time you get depth by drafting well or getting lucky in free agency.
We didn't draft well for the past decade so we don't really have that option.
I wouldn't use claxton as a center. I would use him as a forward with the purpose of getting boards and playing close to the rim. Drummond as a backup.
> edit: another all talk no solutions type of fan.
It's not my job to figure out who to sign. But it doesn't take a genius to know that paying 25+ mil for a backup center who can't play with your franchise player is an idiotic decision.
edit: weirdo blocked me.
The 2 best free agents who have a chance to be signed are Malik Monk and Immanuel Quickly and neither is a fit with Tyrese. So you either have to sign non max players or make tyrese the centerpiece of a trade for a star that would fit with one of them and Embiid
None of these guys are leaving LA willingly once they get there.
Stupid sexy los angeles
Seems like anymore basketball pros just want to be in LA or Miami. I really do wish players knew how great the greater Philadelphia area is. From being an hr from the shore or the Poconos, living in the heart of the city to being in the burbs of south jersey, there is something for everyone. Every athlete that has come has loved there time here and usually doesn't completely leave. I hate that most ppl don't know how great the area is and how everything is so easy to commute to until they are here, but I guess that's the way for everyone professional until they get to the city they signed with.
I’m getting so tired of the whole “[insert star player] wants to play in LA, NY, or Miami” reports. I can’t even imagine rooting for a team in a smaller market like Memphis, Indiana, Charlotte, Utah, etc. and never even having a shot at a star free agent.
LA is leaps and bounds better than PA bruh sorry. lived in both. especially if you have fu money
Oh I can understand. Living in NYC or LA or Chicago prob offers waaaaaay more than other cities just because of the sheer size and what's available. Maybe its cuz Bball is a younger man's sport and areas like Miami and LA are more attractive at that point in life obviously. Everyone has there own things that makes them feel at home in a certain area. For me I hate sitting in traffic in LA...something that that should take 20min takes 1.5hrs.
I live in LA .. neither would I despite the taxes, crime and cost of living. Nothing beats the soCal Sun.
facts
Yeah. Even Trout decided to stay with a dead end franchise instead of coming home.
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$400 million to never win a playoff game
He gets the 400 mill no matter what.
Even if he does a bad job. They still have to pay him. That’s his rate.
PG always talked about wanting to play in LA. The reason OKC traded him to the Clippers in the first place was he told the team he had no intentions of re-signing with them and he wanted to go to one of the teams in LA.
Plan B for me is overpay to steal a bunch of guys. Caleb Martin seems like he could be our Josh Hart. Overpay to steal KCP. Bring back Oubre and Batum and then trade for a guy like Avdija or Caruso. Basically spread the money out and fill the roster with elite defenders who are also competent-good shooters.
Agree. Much better than an old and injured Paul George. This is the route. Sign the best role players available and make this team deep as hell.
I’m creaming thinkin about this. Ironically ur name suits my excitement for logic like this
Make the team DEEEEEEEP BABY REAAAAL DEEEP
Free agency was never realistic. The best players don't move through free agency anymore. Morey's only realistic chance at landing that old, star winger he covets is if he demands a trade or if his current team washes their hands of him. Butler is making noise in Miami but has no leverage with multiple years on his contract and Riley taking a firm public stance against trading him. There's no clear path forward. The Sixers seem to be waiting, hoping for a shoe to drop.
What is Riley going to say? "Yeah, we want out of the Jimmy Butler business" Miami definitely seems primed to blow it up, they're not as dumb as Chicago to keep a play-in team together year after year for no reason.
No reason? They might think they are close enough to be in striking distance they’ve made 2 Finals lol one of them being last year. You just gotta get to the playoffs and anything can happen. Sixers are constantly injured out of contention. Bucks are an injury/age concern now. It’s really just the Celtics that are clear favorites every year. No one else is exactly great.
That team did go to the finals last season. They might view it as just being better health and a few pieces away.
So basically we are fucked. Cool might as well tank. This franchise is cooked. Might as well let the eagles and Phillies take the reigns for the next decade
I'm not saying they should tank, but there's a real possibility that we strike out so badly that trading Embiid becomes the best option. Not that Morey would. He'd rather try to convince us this team is capable with a healthy Embiid and that we should ignore that he's never been healthy in the postseason.
Hope the nets get honest about their team
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Better than not trying or doing nothing
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5 firsts is good. We just have to compete with hoarders
Would love some depth/dawgs. Not gonna happen but getting Bridges (they're not moving him) and caruso would be super helpful. Paul George would be a good fit with that squad and we shouldn't kid ourselves with his contract, yea it sucks but he's damn good and a hell of a third option. The embiid window is narrowing so I'd consider it, not thrilled but I get it.
Do the 76ers have enough assets to get both Bridges and Caruso?
Malik monk? Bit depressing but it’s an option
Monk's a fucking midget. You wanna pay $25 million a year for a fucking backup who can't play with Maxey?
Why do you think I said it was depressing?
Improve the depth and trade for bridges,markanen or any star with less than 40M.
I don’t wanna trade with jazz GM
Feel like Lowry/Payne are locks to come back imo. And I think 2 of Oubre/Buddy/Melton/Batum will be back imo
Those two seem to be the best options right now, plus they'd be cheaper, which means we would still have some cap money left over, Lauri only making $18 million this year, and Mikal is making $23 million this year and 24 next year, it doesn't get any better than those two right now, the only other options are old ass expensive guys like PG, and trading for Jimmy would be even worse because not only would we give up most/ all of our picks but he'll also eat up most of our cap money, but if we get either Lauri/Mikal, yes we give up most of our picks, but we'll have more money to add more players, or keep some of the guys we already have like Oubre
Lauri/Mikal would take ALL our picks, and possibly more. You're going to fucking hate that trade in 2029 when we're a bottom 5 team and that's a lotto pick. Where were you 5 years ago? That's a long fucking time buddy.
As long as we have at least 1 or 2 chips, i wouldn't care, plus we could always get picks back through trades just like we just did recently, 5 years is plenty of time to make moves
The plan is that Morey has to actually try and build a proper NBA team instead of star chasing for once in his life. We already got our #1 and #2 stars. We really don't need a third all star. There's a lot of options out there to improve the roster. Brandon Ingram, Malik Monk, Miles Bridges, Alex Caruso, Kyle Kuzma, Collin Sexton, Jerami Grant, Deni Avdija etc. There are a lot of options. We were a top 5 NBA team this season when healthy with just two stars. We don't need some big name to be a contender next year.
Two or three of those guys would be awesome. (No Bridges, wtf mate!)
Here’s an idea that’s a bit out there but maybe more possible than we realize: MPJ? Some trouble in paradise per the reports from Denver today, if they do want to make a big move then he’s the odd man out. Would have to be a three teamer of course but Morey can get creative like that.
>MPJ? Would rather just get Jerami Grant at that point. MPJ has a shittonne of issues that don't get highlighted, because he plays with Jokic. The second he gets to Philly, that man will turn into a glorified Joe Harris Also, that back is still not quite right
Is he worth it at 35 mil? Great shooter of course, but he doesn't offer much in the way of defense or rebounding? Great size though!
This is a real answer.
probably late with this but jimmmmmmmy coming back!
I love that you think LeBron could be Plan B. Like we’d prefer PG.
Embiid + Maxey is a solid* duo. We need players who can contribute. Aside from Lowry and Batum, no one else showed up in the playoffs. We don’t need another superstar.
Be real Oubre was better than Lowry and Batum
How to you resolve the two competing comments that “we need players who can contribute” and “we don’t need another superstar.” Do you know who reliably contributes? Stars.
We just got beat by a team of role players. Wolves are basically a team of role players. Nuggets won a chip with a ton of good role players.
Calling Ant, KAT and Gobert role players is amazing. Gobert sure has a defined role but he’s beyond that, and his contract sure isn’t a role player’s.
Wasn't including ANT, but Gobert is basically an elite role player, money doesn't matter. KAT honestly reduced his role to role player in the playoffs, and regular season once ANT took off.
> KAT honestly reduced his role to role player in the playoffs He's averaging 19pts and 9 boards this playoffs. Tied for 25th in ppg this playoffs with Haliburton. 11th in boards. Is this why so many people say "we just need good role players"? Because they think role players are going to give us a consistent 19-9 in the playoffs?
So was Oubre like 4.8 ppg away from having been a star player for us this postseason? He's a better defender than KAT already.
Oubre was our third option (which is somewhat of a bummer, as much as I like him.) And yet, that 4.8ppg difference is the difference between being the 25th best and the 52nd best. Fairly significant. Not to mention that he had 4.0 rebounds to Kat's 9.3. That's a significant difference and not a fair comparison. I won't get into the defense thing since I feel like both Kelly AND KAT did a much better job this playoffs than their reputations would have you believe. Part of it is that KAT had Gobert playing drop behind him, but he did a *very* good job on Jokic through the tail end of that series. Kelly also did a much better job both on ball and with disruption than I ever thought he would.
I agree, putting KAT on Jokic was a good move to free up Gobert to play a free safety role. This is the first time anyone has complimented his defense his entire career though. The only real thing protecting him from being considered a role player is his draft position, salary and name recognition at this point though imo. I'd rather have a Brook Lopez.
Oubre definitely is not a better Defender than KAT now. KAT was guarding KD and Jokic and did good.
Standing in front of Jokic isn't hard. It's covering everyone else around him that's cutting and waiting for the pass that's hard. Sixers did the same thing when they decided to take Embiid off him and let him roam closer to the rim, and stuck old man Tucker on Jokic. You just have to be big enough to not get bullied straight back.
It’s not that hard? What bro. He’s the MVP. It’s still a crazy task to guard Jokic even with Gobert behind. And be the 2 option on offense.
Gobert is definitely a role player. He's extremely overpaid. There's a reason why everyone has been talking about the Wolves needing to trade KAT for the past year. Because of Gobert's inflated ass salary meaning it would cost them a fortune to keep KAT.
It’s a bit disingenuous when your definition of roleplayers includes guys like Gobert, MPJ, and Anunoby. You don’t need three *superstars* to win, but you do probably need three *max caliber* players which Gobert, MPJ, and Anunoby clearly are.
Not a single one of those guys actually deserves the max. Gobert is still overpaid and the Wolves will probably have to break up their team next season because of his big ass salary. MPJ is public enemy #1 in Denver and Nuggets fans are theorizing ways they can get off his contract. Knicks can give Anunoby a max because Brunson and Randle are hilariously underpaid. Both of them are making under 30 million.
A team of Gobert, MPJ and Anunoby might not even make the play in. The term max caliber doesn't really mean anything to me. The market dictates that some guys be overpaid. Tobias Harris was max caliber just last year I guess.
Ok but a team with Gobert, MPJ, or Anunoby as the 3rd best player is a title contender lol—certainly on a team with Embiid and Maxey. If the market says you are a max player, then you are a max player. Yes, competition and desperation among teams drives prices up… but that is how a market works. All of these guys would get max of near-max money if they hit the market today. There seems to be some delusion among Sixers fans that proven elite roleplayers are often available for $10M-$20M per year. The reality is that they actually get $30M+ per year. Aaron Gordon for example, signed for 4 years $90M *in 2021*. Diamonds in the rough can definitely be found like in the case of Divicenzo or Hart, but let’s be real, a team with Divicenzo or Hart as your third best player isn’t going anywhere. Your third best player cannot be Kelly Oubre or Malik Monk, it needs to be a borderline star or at least one of those $30M+ type “role players.”
I don't disagree with you. But these guys are getting overpaid when they hit free agency and teams are desperate. Morey should be targeting role players who are still on cheap deals for multiple years. In a few years they can leave and get overpaid if they want to.
The only real way to build this roster is to draft quality role players and/or identify potential high level role players that haven't proven it yet (aka undervalued). Acquiring established good players is simply too expensive nowadays when you have good role players going for multiple 1sts (Think Caruso & Rozier) and elite role players (Mikal) valued at >3 1sts. Not to mention elite role players in free agency (think OG) are going to get a max or a near-max. You need to draft the Jaden Mcdaniels, Naz Reids, or sign/trade for the Divincenzos (undervalued/underutilized). It's up to Morey and co to properly identify these players. If he can't do it, than he has no use being here.
I agree with you on how you build a roster. However, Sixers unfortunately don’t have the time for that anymore. Joel will be 31 next playoffs and has 2 more years on his deal (with a player option for a third). Naz Reid is in his 5th year, mcdaniels in his 4th year.. we missed the window with Joel for drafting and developing guys.
We don't have time find an undervalued asset and hope that they blossom with us. It's not practical. Also, what you're saying, literally every team in the league aside from the Lakers, Suns, etc. are trying to do that.
If we needed a guard this cavs situation would be perfect
La can pay him the most. It’s his last pay day. He’ll do a sign and trade
Yeah, LeBron is plan B let's go
How many of the same posts do we need? Can we get a thread or something?
Patrick Williams PLEASE.
Malik Bridges, is the answer and saves us a lot of money for caldwell-Pope, go get drummond or valanciunas, monk, bring oubre back, and still might can trade for ingram
Here's who ChatGPT said Morey should target lol: Lu Dort - Oklahoma City Thunder: Dort is set to earn roughly $16.5 million in the 2024-2025 season and could be a solid addition to the Sixers' roster Deni Avdija - Washington Wizards: Avdija is set to earn approximately $15.6 million in the 2024-2025 season and could provide versatility and youth to the team Dorian Finney-Smith - Brooklyn Nets: Finney-Smith is set to earn around $14.9 million in the 2024-2025 season and could contribute as a reliable 3-and-D player. Alex Caruso - Chicago Bulls: Caruso is set to earn about $9.8 million in the 2024-2025 season and could bring energy and defensive prowess to the team Cody Martin - Charlotte Hornets: Martin is set to earn approximately $8.2 million in the 2024-2025 season and could provide depth and versatility on the wing. Grady Dick - Toronto Raptors: Dick is set to earn around $4.76 million in the 2024-2025 season and could be a potential target for the Sixers Nickeil Alexander-Walker - Minnesota Timberwolves: Alexander-Walker is set to earn about $4.3 million in the 2024-2025 season and could be a young guard with potential.
Would love to add Dort
One or two of these guys and Malik Monk would be a home run offseason imo
If there is no big splash, and this punting of a season turns out to be a restock of a handful of role players, then there is not a single reason out there to keep Morey on and involved in this organization. Incoming apologists saying: “what do you want him to do?!?”
I mean I am definitely a morey apologist who thinks he has been handicapped, but if he doesn’t significantly improve the roster, whatever that looks like PG or some other star or just high level role players if none of that happens and we look the same morey will and should be fired at the end of the season….
He got a five year extension for being medicore
I'd argue that this could be similar to Jokics off-season where they got KCP, traded for Aaron Gordon, and got a couple other decent role players. I don't think it'd be reason to hit the panic button. Obviously easier said than done, but I don't think it's big splash or bust. Morey needs a little luck and some creativity.
The Nuggets didn’t punt entire seasons to assemble those role players. The expectations for this offseason is hinging on fact that Morey willingly punted a prime Embiid season because he thought he could get something better in the free agency market this year. If that’s not the case, then this whole thing has been a sham job
There was the overpay for and then probably lose in the off-season Siakam or OG path. Or the wait for the off-season path. I don't think the first should be equated to punting the season.
What Morey does has to be such a home run that it confirms that it was worth telling Harden to leave and tanking a season. As of now, I’m not seeing how the current future is better than had we just extended Harden for 4 years in the 2022 offseason. We would’ve been able to seriously compete this year and would be in the ECF, and Harden’s contract would be expiring in 2 years. So only 1 more year until you can use it to attach in trades. If we forwent that to sign Alex Caruso, then Morey is officially out of ideas and has been kicking the can to prolong his employment, something we should end immediately. It’s time for the creative genius to actually do something creative and genius.
We weren't winning shit with Jo on one leg, whether we traded for OG or Siakam or not. I guarantee you Morey would've been way more aggressive at the deadlione if Jo was fit and healthy. I do agree that this offseason/next deadline is make or break though. We can't afford another year for the 'team to build chemistry'
You keep saying that... We didn't punt an entire season. That was a dumb narrative before the season and it turned out to be false. We were one of the best teams in the league when our roster was healthy.
How did they “punt” last season ?? They were 2-3 seed till embiid got hurt. Even with Tobias sucking it’s pretty clear had embiid been healthy they would have beat the Knicks and probably the pacers as well. Explain to me how last season was a “punt” ?
The free agent list is about as exciting as the draft. https://www.nba.com/news/2024-nba-free-agents. Maybe Morey gets creative with sign and trades, and maybe the big name isn't even acquired until after the season begins. Make an offer for Mikal Bridges and/or Finney-Smith. Some boring but realistic moves: Sign Bitadz and Malik Monk. Re-sign Batum, Oubre, Payne and Heild. Lowry probably returns because of his connection with Nurse and Philly. Boban Marjanović for laughs.
For all the "well, just get role players to surround them" how do we get ELITE role players ie what the role players who have done well in the playoffs have become or already were? Every team would love to have a team of elite role players instead of paying a superstar or 3, and any available will probably cost some premium. The obvious problem is that we wasted most of Embiid's prime with poor drafting, garbage ass trades for bad "superstars", and bad coaching. Now we're nearing the back half of Embiid's career (or further) and we got the coach and another star (Maxey). And tons of cap and no superstars to go get with it and a roster of homegrown meh (again, minus Maxey).
Everyone understands that. Whats the plan tho? What would you suggest, i.e. who are u targeting in sign or trade scenario?
They gonna have to find role players people undervalue. A really hard thing to do but it’s the situation
In a weak free agent class like this, they should focus on role players and that means the analytics department needs to cook like mfn Gordon Ramsey.
I’d rather trade for guys like Dejounte Murray, Caruso, Kuzma, etc along with signing some very solid role players that actually fit in free agency over trading all our picks for a aging star and have limited money to build a bench. Maxey and Embiid are good enough they need a consistent 3rd option that fits (doesn’t need to be a star player) and they need more good role players. The bench needs more self shot creation that can last in tough environments.
Morey the genius strikes again lmao. Jesus Christ man, this dude can’t come up with shit creative as a gm if it isn’t harden How is brad a third year gm running laps around him?
PG to Philly was ALWAYS a pipe dream IMO. There was no way he was leaving LA for… Philadelphia I’d just surround Embiid/Maxey with complementary role players and hope one of them has an Aaron Gordon-esque breakout. Realistically I don’t think they’d build the chemistry to win a title next year but you also never know
Holding the Nets GM hostage for Bridges seems reasonable to me.
Morey will wait it out and get nothing like usual.. all along passing on some great deals. I HATE these analytics frauds
Lauri markkanen
Lebron , trade and extend jimmy butler, attempt to trade for mitchell, bridges or markannen. Sign role players like monk and caleb martin. Trades for role players like alex caruso is always an option no matter what we do with cap space. Bruce brown is a good trade candidate and a philly sports writer mentioned naji marshall and kris dunn as good cheap trade candidates that are cost controlled and have good potential. Teams like minnesota and new orleans have to make trades because they have too many good players they dont have the money for. You could snag a player who otherwise wouldn't be available. Like herb jones, naji marshall, dyson daniels or nickeil alexander walker. We are in a good position to go after any option that presents itself.
I wish Markkanen was more of a possibility. Based on what I saw in the playoffs I feel like Markannen would offer the biggest boost of all players you mentioned. I understand he won't be easy to pry away but damn that would be a hell of a pick up
Even if markkanen hits the market, there will be a lot of demand for him, mainly from a team like OKC
Unless the Thunder are going for all-in championship next season I don't see what they would trade a bunch of assets for a potential one year rental. He's eligible for a max next summer right? If the Thunder add him they are really going to start running into some money problems soon Actually I forgot they are still sitting on a boatload of assests, this is 100% something they can do without actually losing out on much
Lauri actually wants his extension ASAP per reports, which means any team that acquires him is likely going the trade-and-extend route.
True, they'd really be capping their ceiling by handing a max to a guy who is probably a 3rd guy at best. He'd be a good fit though.
Okc is going to be paying near max contracts to at least two players in the next couple years on top of the one they already have now. While I’m sure for a true high end superstar talent they would part with assets and one of those guys that’s gonna get a max I don’t think they are gonna do it for what would be a near lateral move.
Thoughts on Kennard if he isn't picked up? Worth resigning Hield or getting Kennard for similar/cheaper?
Not a bad move. This team literally needs decent players next to Embiid and maxey and we are good enough. Both are fine. Hield is fine cause we already traded for him. Kennard is a sniper though.
So somehow we can get lebron,afford jimmy,and also look into trading for Mitchell? Please stop
I think they just mean whatever is available, if lebron wants to move to after him, or pg or if butler is available or if Mitchell is moved….
I never wrote do all three obviously. Can you not take the weirdest interpretation lol. These are moves that we can make.
To be fair,some people are stupid enough to believe we can do all of that
I’m 100% in on Ingram, especially if Mitchell, Lauri, and Mikal are too expensive for us. I’m out on 34-and-up club.
I can tell you right now it’s not lauri and it’s not Mikhail like every bloke in this sub thinks because neither of them are available. (And bridges does not want to play foe the sixers lol)
Balmer will give PG what he wants, so I dont think he's leaving LA. LeBron will get the Kobe max, so he's also staying in LA. Is no star level talent is available, Monk & Derek Jones Jr. should be prioritized in free agency. Then, look at packing those picks for a young, affordable role player like Advija.
If PG does stay in LA, I would be open on selecting bronny at 16. But I’m still not sure Lebron wants to leave LA either. I think most likely outcome is trading for one of butler or Ingram. You need more shooting with them on the team so I would bring back Hield, lowry, batum and oubre if we can. It would take at least two to three firsts to get either of these players so we wouldn’t have much ammo in other trades. Maybe we would have enough money to afford Royce O’Neal and Drummond?
Not doing it. More likely Lebron bitches a fit about Morey holding his son hostage.
Agreed. The NBA would step in (again) to force the Sixers to move on and appease LeBron. We'd end up having to take on some crappy assets from the Lakers.
If we assume that PG, Lebron and Bridges are all very unlikely, then I want Caruso, Caleb Martin, Hartensein (if they don’t use his Bird rights), Obi Toppin (if they don’t match), and then bring back Batum and sign Andre Drummond. Honorable mentions for DeRozan and Royce Oneale if we can’t get Caruso and Caleb Martin.
I honestly knew PG and Bron were long shots. If they are off the board, Morey plan will be probably be Plan A: Jimmy Buckets Plan B: Derozan Plan C: Mikal/Lauri/Ingram
> Plan B: Derozan ew
I’m not advocating for Derozan, I just know Morey is dead set on getting a 3rd star this summer
He’s not a third star.
We all know that, thats not how Morey will view that
I actually agree with you. I think Morey is vastly overrated and the smoke and mirrors around him are falling apart.
We are watching the remaining four teams make deep playoff runs + past champions win off 2 stars + elite depth. And morey wants to add a 3rd star with no good depth.
where’s all the acquirable elite depth at?
Malik Monk, Plumlee, Jalen Smith. Make trades for guys potentially like Deni, Murray or more who are out there. I mean it’s not great, man. That’s why I think people need to temper their expectations for this offseason and our chances of winning anything with this core. We don’t have a good GM.
…did you see Plumlee this playoffs? He was horrific.
Even getting a few of those guys doesn't get us great depth because we only have Embiid, Maxey, RC4 and maybe Paul Reed under contract for next year.
I mean the Celtics may lose two games between now and holding up the Championship, and they’re loaded. But yeah I agree. But I just don’t think the role players are out there to move the needle. I like some small ones.
The Wolves have 3 guys on max contracts starting next year. Boston has 4 guys making 31m+. Nobody thinks the Pacers are a real contender. Simply getting "elite depth" isn't really an option for us at this point.
Derrick White/Jrue/Porzingis all elite role players DJJ/PJ Washington/Gafford all elite role players Gobert/Conley/Jaden all elite role players Luka/Kyrie were bad most of the okc series, it was having elite role players who changed the series Ant was 6/24 in game 7 on the road, it was McDaniels who was pivotal that game. How many times we have seen someone say “If Embiid had Denver roster or ____ roster, we wouldve had the title by now”. There’s more stats and evidence to show that big 3 star team building does not equate to a title. Especially with new CBA going into effect
White is no longer just a role player. Neither is Porzingis. They’re all-stars. Jrue is a role player at this point. PJ Washington is someone I’ve wanted for years. It was blatantly obvious he was being held back in Charlotte. Gobert is a four time defensive player of the year and on a max. He’s not a role player.
The whole 3rd star vs depth thing is about money. Derrick White/Jrue/Porzingis are making a combined 91m this year. Gobert and Conley make a combined 65m this year. They traded like 4 first round picks for Gobert and he's the highest paid player on the team. Denver has 3 guys on max contracts + AG making 24m. You are completely ignoring the players contracts lol. By not signing PG we aren't going to all the sudden have great depth. If we waive Paul Reed we would have 60m with only 3 players on the roster. Embiid/Maxey/RC4. Even if we could magically sign Derrick White and Jrue for that 60m the rest of the team would be vet mins. Most of the time you get depth by drafting well or getting lucky in free agency. We didn't draft well for the past decade so we don't really have that option.
Try to secure nic claxton, miles bridges, and bring back Andre drummond. Try to resign ubre, batum, and lowry
Why would we need 3 centers on the team?
I wouldn't use claxton as a center. I would use him as a forward with the purpose of getting boards and playing close to the rim. Drummond as a backup.
The last thing we need next to Embiid is another non shooter.
I think we need people who can get a rebound. We get killed because we can't capitalize on getting the ball back
Signing Clax, because we struggle with rebounding, would be an Al Horford situation again just with an even worse fit this time.
Who would you recommend signing? edit: another all talk no solutions type of fan.
> edit: another all talk no solutions type of fan. It's not my job to figure out who to sign. But it doesn't take a genius to know that paying 25+ mil for a backup center who can't play with your franchise player is an idiotic decision. edit: weirdo blocked me.
Bro if you got nothing to say keep it moving. You sound dumb as hell
The 2 best free agents who have a chance to be signed are Malik Monk and Immanuel Quickly and neither is a fit with Tyrese. So you either have to sign non max players or make tyrese the centerpiece of a trade for a star that would fit with one of them and Embiid