- Derek Bodner of The Athletic examines the expected battle for backup point guard minutes between Sixers newcomers Raul Neto and Trey Burke. Both veterans signed minimum salary contracts this summer and both will try to fill the void created when T.J. McConnell left for the Pacers. Bodner notes that Burke has received more playing time than Neto over his career, but he has also been on worse teams that offered greater opportunity. He adds that Neto prefers to read the defense on any given play, while Burke tends to seek his own shots.
- Malachi Richardson, who saw infrequent playing time for the Raptors last season, has signed with Hapoel Holon in Israel, relays Emiliano Carchia of Sportando. Richardson appeared in 22 games for Toronto before being traded at the deadline to the Sixers, who waived him.
- In his latest mailbag for The Athletic, Derek Bodner explores the likelihood of the Sixers bringing draft-and-stash prospect Vasilije Micic stateside at some point, weighs the team’s ability to make another big splash on the trade market, and addresses a handful of other 76ers-related topics.
After four seasons in Miami, Josh Richardson finds himself on a new team. The shooting guard was shocked when he first heard about the Jimmy Butler sign-and-trade that sent him to Philadelphia. However, after digesting the news, he became excited for the new opportunity, as Anthony Chiang of the Miami Herald writes.
“I mean once it happened and I started looking at everything, it was smooth,” Richardson said. “I got excited once I saw our roster that we’re going to be working with, and I think we’ve got a good chance to come out of the East. And I’m excited to be able to go and play for a contender.”
While Miami appears to be a lock for the playoffs this upcoming season, the Sixers have positioned themselves to make the NBA Finals. Adding Richardson and Al Horford to go with incumbent starters Joel Embiid, Ben Simmons, and Tobias Harris arguably gives Philadelphia the best starting five in the league.
Richardson saw an increase in field goal attempts in each of his four seasons in Miami with last year’s 14.1 shots per game representing his career high. The shooting guard understands that he may see fewer attempts on his new team, but he’s not worried about being deemed the fifth option in Philadelphia.
“It’s not really like that — one through five — that makes no sense,” Richardson said. “It’s not like a certain amount of touches every game. But being able to play with so much talent, it’s exciting. You can’t give one guy too much attention because you have four other guys that can hurt you just as much. Being able to play with guys like Ben and Jo, Tobias, Al is just, I don’t know, I’m excited.”
The signing of Kawhi Leonard and the trade for Paul George helped the Clippers have the league’s best offseason, according to David Aldridge of The Athletic. L.A. added two potential MVP candidates while keeping the core of last year’s playoff team intact and acquiring another rotation piece by trading for Maurice Harkless.
The Nets, who also hit the jackpot in free agency by signing Kevin Durant and Kyrie Irving, finished second on Aldridge’s list, followed by the Jazz, Lakers and Sixers. At the bottom are the Hornets, who lost Kemba Walker and replaced him with Terry Rozier, and the Warriors, who not only saw Durant leave, but also parted with Andre Iguodala and Shaun Livingston, two key components of their championship teams.
There’s more NBA-related news to pass along:
- Tony Wroten, whose journey to the EuroLeague we profiled earlier this week, has decided to sign with Anwil Wloclawek in Poland rather than KK Zadar in Croatia, tweets Emiliano Carchia of Sportando. Wroten, 26, attended a mini-camp with the Wizards in June.
- Lithuanian swingman Rokas Giedraitis turned down multiple opportunities to play in Summer League this year, according to international basketball writer Donatas Urbonas (Twitter link). A few teams considered offering him a two-way deal last year, but he remains “under the NBA radar.” Giedraitis is considered a late bloomer at 27 and is under contract with Alba Berlin for the upcoming season.
- Jason Caffey admits he embraced an irresponsible lifestyle during his time in the NBA, and now he is trying to warn younger athletes not to make the same mistakes, writes Gary Washburn of The Boston Globe. Caffey believes the choices he made, along with an undiagnosed mental illness, prevented him from having a longer career. Caffey had 10 children with eight women and says watching their success inspired him to change. “When I saw them doing so well — got a son at Alabama and a daughter at Missouri, D1 schools,” he said. “I knew then if I could help my own kids — kids who were pegged to be kids of a guy who’s a deadbeat dad, a guy who’s never going to be anything again — when I overcame that stigma, I knew it was time for me to step out and help other children.”
Former NBA big man Roy Hibbert is transitioning into coaching, according to Shams Charania of The Athletic, who reports (via Twitter) that the Sixers have hired Hibbert in a player development coaching role.
A two-time All-Star as a player, Hibbert looked like a franchise cornerstone for the Pacers in the early 2010s, but his production and effectiveness fell off a cliff several years ago. After making stops with the Lakers, Hornets, and Nuggets during his final two NBA seasons, the 7’2″ center hasn’t appeared in an NBA game since the 2016/17 season.
Although he’s still only 32 years old, Hibbert has seemingly given up on the idea of making an NBA comeback, and is now looking to begin his coaching career. He’ll get his start on Brett Brown‘s staff in Philadelphia, which is headlined by assistants Ime Udoka and Jim O’Brien.
The O’Brien connection is worth noting — the current 76ers assistant was Hibbert’s head coach in Indiana during the center’s first three years in the league.
The Sixers have officially signed free agent forward Isaiah Miles to a contract, the team announced today in a press release. While terms of the deal weren’t disclosed, it’ll be an Exhibit 10 contract, per Kyle Neubeck of The Philly Voice (Twitter link).
Miles, who went undrafted out of St. Joe’s in 2016, has played professionally overseas of the last three years. He has spent time with teams in France and Turkey, having played for Limoges CSP in 2018/19. In 50 games (22.9 MPG) for the French club, he averaged 9.6 PPG and 3.7 RPG, knocking down 41.4% of his three-point attempts.
The Sixers have a bit of history with Miles, having added him to their Summer League roster in 2017 and 2018. He played for the Magic’s Summer League team this year, but is now on track to head to camp with Philadelphia.
After signing Miles, the 76ers have just one spot left on their 20-man offseason roster. They have 14 players on guaranteed deals, a pair on two-way contracts, and three on non-guaranteed pacts. As noted above, Miles – the 19th man under contract – will join Trey Burke and Christ Koumadje as players without fully guaranteed salaries.
Team Australia has formally announced its 12-man roster for the 2019 World Cup, and the group features six NBA players.
Aron Baynes (Suns), Joe Ingles (Jazz), Patty Mills (Spurs), Matthew Dellavedova (Cavaliers), and Jonah Bolden (Sixers) are part of the 12-man squad. So is former No. 1 pick Andrew Bogut, who is technically back under contract with the NBL’s Sydney Kings, but was part of the Warriors team that appeared in the NBA Finals this spring.
Australia’s roster is rounded out by NBL players Cameron Gliddon, Chris Goulding, Nathan Sobey, and Nicholas Kay, along with Jock Landale and Xavier Cooks. Landale currently plays for Lithuanian club Zalgiris Kaunas, while Cooks is a member of SIG Strasbourg in France.
Although Team Australia has a strong roster, there are no guarantees that the squad will make a deep run in next month’s event. The Boomers finds themselves in Group H, which features a handful of tough competitors — Lithuania, Canada, and Senegal. Only the top two teams will advance to the second round.
The NBA has set its Christmas Day schedule for the 2019/20 season, according to reports from multiple ESPN writers. Adrian Wojnarowski, Tim Bontemps, and Malika Andrews have details on the five games set for December 25, 2019.
While the order and times of the games haven’t yet been confirmed, these are the five matchups we’ll see on Christmas Day this December, per ESPN’s reporting:
- Los Angeles Clippers vs. Los Angeles Lakers
- Milwaukee Bucks at Philadelphia 76ers
- Houston Rockets at Golden State Warriors
- Boston Celtics at Toronto Raptors
- New Orleans Pelicans at Denver Nuggets
The Clippers/Lakers and Bucks/Sixers matchups will pit the two current favorites from the Western and Eastern Conferences against one another. Those games figure to be the headliners of the day, with Kawhi Leonard and Paul George squaring off against LeBron James and Anthony Davis, plus Giannis Antetokounmpo and Joel Embiid going head-to-head.
The Rockets/Warriors game – a rematch of the most competitive Western postseason rivalry of the last two years – should be an entertaining showdown as well, even without Kevin Durant or Klay Thompson in the picture. James Harden, Russell Westbrook, Stephen Curry, Draymond Green, and D’Angelo Russell will still provide plenty of star power.
The defending champion Raptors will make a rare Christmas Day appearance, hosting the new-look Celtics, led by Kemba Walker. It’ll also be a rare December 25 home game for the Nuggets, who will take on the young, up-and-coming Pelicans and No. 1 pick Zion Williamson.
Which Christmas Day game are you most looking forward to in 2019? Are there any teams or matchups you’re disappointed to see (or not see) on the December 25 schedule? Jump into the comment section below to share your thoughts!
Despite the loss of J.J. Redick, the Sixers have plenty of perimeter shooters on their current roster, as Derek Bodner of The Athletic details. Tobias Harris, Josh Richardson, Mike Scott, Al Horford, James Ennis, Trey Burke and Raul Neto loom as long-range threats but mainly in catch-and-shoot situations. That means Joel Embiid and Ben Simmons need to create and open up space for their perimeter players.
- Point guards Trey Burke and Raul Neto could be useful members of the Sixers’ rotation but big man Kyle O’Quinn will have regain the form he showed earlier in his career with the Knicks to make a meaningful contribution, Mike O’Connor of The Athletic writes. O’Connor breaks down the strengths and weaknesses of the incoming reserve trio and how they’ll fit in.
JULY 30: The Sixers’ deal with Burke is now official, the team confirmed today in a press release.
“Trey’s experience as a ballhandler matched with his scoring ability makes him a good fit for our roster,” GM Elton Brand said in a statement. “We’re excited to welcome him to the 76ers and look forward to the positive impact he can have on our team.”
JULY 25: The Sixers will add free agent point guard Trey Burke on a one-year deal, Shams Charania of The Athletic relays (Twitter link).
It will be a one-year pact at the minimum and will only be partially guaranteed, Keith Pompey of the Philadelphia Inquirer tweets.
Burke began last season on the Knicks before the team traded him to the Mavs in the Kristaps Porzingis deal. Burke saw action in 25 games for Dallas, scoring 9.7 points per contest.
Philadelphia has revamped its second unit this summer. The team signed Kyle O’Quinn and Raul Neto while bringing back Mike Scott, Furkan Korkmaz and James Ennis so far this offseason.
The Sixers also added first-round pick Matisse Thybulle and will look to get a full season out of Zhaire Smith.
Photo courtesy of USA Today Sports Images.