Kai Jones To Work Out For Sixers

Free agent big man Kai Jones is scheduled to meet with and work out for the Sixers in the coming days, according to Shams Charania of The Athletic and Stadium, who says Philadelphia has shown some interest in the former Hornet (Twitter video link).

The No. 19 overall pick in the 2021 draft, Jones averaged just 2.7 points and 2.0 rebounds in 9.1 minutes per game across 67 total appearances in his first two professional seasons. He had a much bigger role at the G League level, averaging 17.2 points, 9.9 rebounds, 1.2 steals and 2.1 blocks in 38 regular season games with the Greensboro Swarm — Charlotte’s affiliate — from 2021-23.

Jones made a series of unusual social media posts prior to the 2023/24 season, calling out some of his teammates in a handful of tweets and videos. A report ahead of training camp indicated that the big man wouldn’t be reporting to the Hornets for personal reasons. He subsequently requested a trade and then was waived by the club shortly thereafter. The 23-year-old has been a free agent since then.

According to Charania, Jones has been working on himself “on and off the court” since the fall in the hopes of earning another NBA opportunity. The young center said back in November that he was meeting with teams, and one report around that time indicated that the Clippers brought him in for “a visit of some capacity.”

As Charania notes, Jones played well for the Bahamas in a pair of AmeriCup qualifying contests last month, averaging 13.5 points and 8.0 rebounds in 29.2 minutes per game while making 68.8% of his shots from the floor.

The Sixers, who have been on the lookout for frontcourt help since Joel Embiid went down with a knee injury, have two open roster spots, so they’ll have to add a 14th man at some point relatively soon and figure to fill both of those openings before the end of the regular season.