- The Sixers‘ blockbuster trades could backfire if they can’t keep the starting five together after this season, warns Keith Pompey of The Philadelphia Inquirer. The front office will likely have to give max deals to both Jimmy Butler and Tobias Harris, and J.J. Redick will be a free agent as well.
- Zhaire Smith closed out his 2018/19 season on a positive note with the Sixers’ G League team in Delaware, Brian Seltzer of NBA.com writes. Smith, who spent much of the year rehabbing from Jones Fracture surgery, finished with 19 points and 12 points in his final two games of the NBA G League regular season.
Here are Friday’s assignments and recalls from around the NBA G League:
- The Sixers assigned big man Jonah Bolden to the Delaware Blue Coats, the team’s PR department tweets. Bolden is averaging 16 PPG and 12 RPG in 33.3 MPG over six appearances with the Blue Coats, who play a back-to-back this weekend.
- The Spurs recalled rookie guard and first-round pick Lonnie Walker IV from the Austin Spurs, according to a team press release. In 28 games with Austin, Walker IV is averaging 16.7 PPG in 27.5 MPG.
- The Magic assigned guard Melvin Frazier Jr. to Lakeland ahead of the G League’s team back-to-back games this weekend, the team’s PR department tweets. Frazier is averaging 12.1 PPG in 29.8 MPG over 16 games with Lakeland.
- The Knicks recalled center Luke Kornet from Westchester, the team’s PR department tweets. Kornet is averaging 18.8 PPG and 8.8 RPG in 32.5 MPG over 11 games with Westchester.
- The Jazz assigned first-round pick and guard Grayson Allen to the Salt Lake City Stars, the team’s PR department tweets. Allen is averaging 17.5 PPG in 31.8 MPG while starting 11 games for the Stars.
- The Warriors assigned rookie guard and first-round pick Jacob Evans III to Santa Cruz, according to a team press release. In 20 games with Santa Cruz, he’s averaging 11.5 PPG and 2.5 APG in 26.4 MPG.
Celtics guard Marcus Smart has been fined $50K for forcefully shoving Joel Embiid in the team’s game against the Sixers on Wednesday, the NBA announced today.
The incident occurred at the 7:06 mark in the third quarter, with Smart colliding into a hard screen from Embiid and crashing to the floor. Smart retaliated by pushing Embiid onto the hardwood, receiving a Flagrant 2 foul which resulted in an ejection from the contest.
Smart’s fine was also based on his repeated acts of unsportsmanlike conduct during past games, the NBA said in its release. He was fined $25K for an altercation with Cavs guard J.R. Smith in October and $35K for charging at Hawks guard DeAndre’ Bembry in January.
Smart finished with three points and four assists in 19 minutes of action on Wednesday, with his early exit hurting Boston’s chances of pulling out the victory and clinching a playoff berth. Philadelphia ultimately came away with the victory, led by Embiid’s 37 points and career-high 22 rebounds.
The Celtics have games lined up against the Hornets (31-39), Spurs (42-30), Cavaliers (19-53), Pacers (44-28) and Nets (37-36) to close out the month of March.
- Which NBA teams appear to have the brightest futures based on their young talent? Vincent Goodwill of Yahoo Sports tackles that question, identifying which clubs have the most promising young cores. The Sixers lead the way, while the Hawks, Bulls, and Suns fall outside of Goodwill’s top five.
- The Sixers‘ ability to make a deep playoff run this spring figures to hinge on their starting five, given their lack of reliable depth. However, Mike Scott – acquired along with Tobias Harris from the Clippers last month – has been the club’s “most consistent and most versatile” reserve since arriving in Philadelphia, contends Keith Pompey of The Philadelphia Inquirer. Scott, a free agent at season’s end, has averaged a career-high 23.2 minutes per contest, posting a .386 3PT% and handling a variety of defensive assignments for the 76ers.
- Within his look at several contenders for the 2019 NBA championship, Sam Amick of The Athletic writes that a source close to Tobias Harris has “raved” about Sixers general manager Elton Brand. While that doesn’t guarantee that Harris will re-sign with Philadelphia in free agency, it’s certainly a positive sign, Amick notes.
Here are Wednesday’s G League assignments and recalls from around the NBA:
- The Sixers have re-assigned Zhaire Smith and Justin Patton to their G League affiliate, the Delaware Blue Coats, the club announced (via Twitter). Smith was available to play for Philadelphia on Tuesday night, but didn’t get a chance to make his NBA debut.
- After scoring a game-high 28 points to help lead the Capital City Go-Go to a Tuesday win, Chasson Randle was recalled from the G League today by the Wizards, per the team (via Twitter). Randle is part of Washington’s rotation tonight vs. Orlando.
- The Suns recalled rookie guard Elie Okobo from the G League in advance of their game tonight vs. Utah, the team announced in a press release. Okobo had 19 points, five assists, and five rebounds for the Northern Arizona Suns on Tuesday.
- Rookie forward Chimezie Metu was assigned to the G League today by the Spurs, according to a team release. Metu is active for Austin’s game tonight vs. Iowa.
- The Thunder recalled dunk contest champion Hamidou Diallo from the G Leauge today, tweets Brett Dawson of The Athletic. Diallo, who is active tonight for the Thunder, recorded 18 points and nine rebounds for the Oklahoma City Blue on Tuesday.
Here are Tuesday’s G League assignments and recalls from around the NBA:
- The Grizzlies recalled Tyler Dorsey from the G League affiliate, the Memphis Hustle, the team announced (Twitter link).
- The Celtics assigned Robert Williams to their G League affiliate, the Maine Red Claws, the team announced (Twitter link).
- The Wizards assigned Chasson Randle to their G League affiliate, the Capital City Go-Go, per a press release. Randle has averaged 5.7 PPG and 2.0 APG in 15.2 minutes per game with Washington.
- The Jazz assigned Grayson Allen to the Salt Lake City Stars, the team announced today in a press release. Allen, on his 11th assignment of the season, will suit up for Utah’s G League affiliate tonight.
- The Sixers recalled rookie Zhaire Smith, who was available for Philadelphia’s game tonight, according to the team (via Twitter). Smith, who has yet to make his NBA debut, didn’t see any action vs. Cleveland.
After failing to land a marquee free agent with their maximum-salary cap room last offseason, the Sixers instead turned to the trade market to secure an impact player, acquiring Jimmy Butler from Minnesota. Then they did it again a few months later, completing a trade with the Clippers for Tobias Harris.
The idea of putting together a “Big Three” has been popular in the NBA over the last decade or so, but with their acquisitions of Butler and Harris, the 76ers pulled off a rare feat, compiling a “Big Four.” Butler and Harris joined Joel Embiid and Ben Simmons in a starting lineup that now features four players with All-NBA potential.
Neither Butler nor Harris is on a long-term contract, however, as both players are expected to reach unrestricted free agency this summer. The Sixers will hold Bird rights on each player, allowing the team to go over the cap to re-sign them, and Philadelphia will have the flexibility to do so. Even with Embiid’s $27.5MM cap hit on the books for next season, the 76ers’ cap sheet is relatively clean — they’re only carrying approximately $41MM in guaranteed money, per Basketball Insiders.
Of course, Butler and Harris are each expected to be eligible for salaries worth up to about $32.7MM, so if the Sixers re-sign both players, and perhaps veteran sharpshooter J.J. Redick, it will be tricky to add many additional reinforcements to complement them. Adding extra help would get even more difficult in future seasons, since Simmons’ rookie contract expires in 2020 and he figures to be in line for a huge new deal of his own.
With major personnel decisions looming, the next couple months will be huge for the Sixers, who need to assess the potential long-term fit of an Embiid/Simmons/Butler/Harris core. Does retaining all four players create diminishing returns for those third or fourth options whose talents might not be maximized? Are Butler and Harris – neither of whom was an All-Star this season – worthy of long-term, maximum-salary (or near-max) investments?
Philadelphia’s performance in the postseason figures to play an important part in that equation — a first-round exit would raise serious questions about whether it makes sense to invest in both Butler and Harris, whereas an NBA Finals run would incentivize re-signing both players.
What do you think? Will the Sixers re-sign both Butler and Harris this offseason? Will they choose one or the other? Or will they go in a completely different direction, opening up cap room to pursue other players?
Vote in our poll, then head to the comment section below to weigh in!
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