Sixers Remaining Active, Still Not A Lot of Results
What Kind of Help, Will Simmons Have Next Year?
Bill Streicher-USA TODAY Sports
We're closing in on the end of day 2 of NBA Free Agency, and the money has been flying like it's going out of style. 33 deals have been agreed to, and nearly $2 billion is the damage done, thus far. Of those 33 contracts, five contracts have surpassed the $100 million mark, while 14 of those deals have come in at no less than $70 million. It's really mind-blowing to believe that this much money has been shelled out, and LeBron James, Kevin Durant, Al Horford, and Dwayne Wade still remain free agents. Nonetheless, here we are, and all of that is true. It is also true, that one of the teams with the most money, have done very little. No, I'm not talking about the Los Angeles Lakers. I'm referring to our own Philadelphia 76ers.
The Sixers entered free agency this year, with an incredible amount of money, nearly $60 million to be exact. Yet, they've only managed to sign one player, by the name of Jerryd Bayless. For a team with so much money, and so many needs, this is not suffice. It's not like the Sixers haven't been trying though. Multiple reports have linked their interest to multiple players. Among the names they've been linked to: Harrison Barnes, Dion Waiters, and Allen Crabbe. Nearly 48 hours later, and we haven't seen much activity by the Sixers. Although, we do have some clarification.
For starters, 76ers Beat Reporter Tom Moore (Calkins Media) sent out a tweet earlier this afternoon, citing NBA sources that say the Sixers will not be signing Allen Crabbe to a four-year offer sheet. Now, he didn't say that the offer sheet wouldn't be shorter than four years, but it certainly doesn't sound like Crabbe is coming to Philly. Multiple sources have confirmed that the Portland Trail Blazers intend to match any offer made to Crabbe, despite signing Evan Turner yesterday, to a 4 year, $70 million contract.
Moving on to Dion Waiters, it appears that the Sixers are in a waiting game, for the former Syracuse guard. Sixers reporter Keith Pompey tweeted out yesterday, that Waiters is scheduled for a meeting with the Sacramento Kings over the weekend. Pompey also noted that the Sixers want a face-to-face meeting with Waiters, but presumably, have failed to secure one right now. Given that the Kings have now signed fellow wingman Aaron Afflalo, if Waiters leaves Sacramento without a contract, one would assume that his next meeting may be with the Sixers.
There's very little news to report on the Harrison Barnes front. Golden State met with Kevin Durant yesterday in the Hamptons, and the meeting "went well" according to multiple sources. However, the Warriors are now in the ultimate waiting game. They're waiting on Durant's decision, before focusing on Barnes. In this writer's opinion, I believe that the best option for the Sixers would be to sign Barnes to an offer sheet, forcing the Warriors hand, making them decide between him and Durant. Either way, you've got nothing to lose.
In other news that involves the Sixers, a number of potential targets were taken off the market yesterday. It all began when DeMar DeRozan signed a 5 year, $145 million contract to stay in Toronto. DeRozan was never expected to leave, but don't tell that to Sixers fans. Jordan Clarkson and Evan Fournier were another pair of targets to come off the market, as they re-upped with their respective teams, to the tune of $50 million & $85 million, respectively. Jeremy Lin and Kent Bazemore were also snagged up yesterday, Lin signing with Brooklyn for $36 million over 3 years, while Bazemore re-upped with the Hawks for $70 million over four years. Despite the signing of Jerryd Bayless, yesterday was pretty disappointing for Sixers fans.
Upon waking up this morning, I found a pair of very interesting rumors making the rounds. One of the top headlines on my Twitter timeline was the above tweet from ESPN's Marc J. Spears.
The Sixers have yet another name to add to their list, and his name is Rajon Rondo. Rondo spent the majority of his career with the Boston Celtics, where he went to four all-star games, was named to the 2006 NBA All-Rookie team, was named to four NBA All-Defensive teams, and won a NBA championship in 2008. Rondo would be traded to the Dallas Mavericks in December 2014, before signing with the Sacramento Kings that summer. Over the course of his career, Rondo has averaged 11 points per game, to go along with 8.7 assists per game, and nearly 5 rebounds per game. He's a career 28% three-point shooter, but shot nearly 37% from beyond the arc last year. While he leaves a lot to be desired in his scoring game, there's no denying that he's an elite passer. Even though they signed Bayless, if the Sixers feel it makes sense, they could opt to bring Rondo in.
The other rumor that surfaced this morning, actually stemmed from Jamal Crawford's Twitter account. As you can see in the above picture, Crawford's two most recent follows are 76ers cornerstones Ben Simmons and Joel Embiid. In this day of social media, fans immediately take that as "oh, this guy's signing with us!" So, you can imagine that immediately fans believed Crawford was coming to Philadelphia. As it turns out, there may actually be something to Crawford's following of Simmons and Embiid. Keith Pompey of Philly.com noted in his piece on this subject, that the Sixers indeed have interest in signing the former sixth man of the year. It wouldn't necessarily make sense, given that Crawford's 36, and would likely want to end his career on a championship contender. Although, Crawford's presence in the locker room would be fantastic for both Simmons & Embiid. As Pompey notes in his article, "He’s known for being a greater person than a basketball player. And that's saying a lot, considering he's won three sixth-man-of-the-year awards."
With free agency still in the early stages, there's a lot of time left for the Sixers to make moves. Whether they actually make moves, that remains to be seen. The only thing we know for certain, is that the rumor mill is always there to keep us entertained.
