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Don’t let the nail polish and TikTok videos fool you — Sixers’ Jared McCain is a killer on the court don,t,let,the,nail,polish,and,tiktok,videos,fool,you,sixers,jared,mccain,is,a,killer,on,the,court,liberty,ballers,front-page,nba-draft,76ers-features-profiles,76ers-draft-rumors-news

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Tyrese Maxey might be the most positive person to ever put on a Sixers uniform.

His smile lights up a room. He makes his teammates — and even curmudgeonly reporters — laugh. With the Sixers selecting Duke’s Jared McCain with the 16th overall pick Wednesday night, Maxey might have a little competition in the sunshine and rainbows department.

But just like Maxey, don’t mistake the kindness for weakness. McCain is a stone-cold killer on the court who will bury a three in your face — with a smile on his.

By now you’ve likely seen that McCain paints his fingernails and has a massive TikTok following. While a bunch of old, insecure men clutch their pearls over it, it shows McCain is comfortable in his own skin — a strong statement to make about a 20-year-old.

While McCain enjoys doing things off the court, he is a fierce competitor on it. Watch just about any game he played at Duke last season and you’ll likely see some trash talk and fiery celebrations after a big shot.

“I think it’s a good balance I have,” McCain said Friday at the Sixers’ practice facility. “Being on social media and doing all this stuff outside of basketball, it comes with a lot of hate. And when you get a lot of hate, you kind of want to prove yourself that you can be one of the best players in the world in college.”

And McCain did just that, shining all season long for the Blue Devils, especially in the NCAA Tournament.

One of the elite skills that helped McCain realize his NBA dream is shooting. He knocked down 41.4% of his threes on a healthy 5.8 attempts per game in his lone season with Duke.

As we’ve seen, Daryl Morey is an executive who highly values three-point shooting, especially when building around a player like Joel Embiid.

“He’s already putting up a high volume of threes,” Morey said after the draft Wednesday. “And being able to shoot threes at a high volume and be in the high 30s, low 40s (percentage-wise) is maybe the most valuable skill in the NBA. It’s on the list of the top few, so that’s a big, big part of the calculus with Jared. One hundred percent, absolutely.”

McCain is far from a one-dimensional player though. He’s plenty crafty off the bounce, able to knock down midrange jumpers, floaters, fadeaways and finish with both hands at the rim. He’s a smart offensive player that understands spacing and is a good connective passer. What he lacks in size and athleticism on the defensive end he makes up for with his basketball IQ and desire to win.

He’s made numerous big shots, he’ll dive for loose balls, he’ll get in there and fight for rebounds. Simply put, he’s a winning basketball player.

“Frankly, he sort of checked every box,” Morey said, “that’s why we were so high on him — in that he not only is someone who has a skill and the work ethic to get out there on the floor, and also playing in high-level games … He’s been a top-10, top-15 guy in the country in his class the whole way across. So he’s a combination of a guy we think could get out there a little quicker and, at the same time, a lot of upside given he’s very young and has a great work ethic.”

Every competitive athlete feels like they have something to prove. For McCain, he said he focused on his ability on the ball during the pre-draft process. At 6-foot-2, the ability to operate as a ball handler could be critical to his development. McCain doesn’t have to go far to find an example of a player that’s had success in this area.

Maxey came to the Sixers as an explosive off-ball guard. He thrived in that role next to Ben Simmons and James Harden. After The Beard was dealt to the Clippers, the ball was in Maxey’s hands. He took some lumps along the way, but the increased role led Maxey to his first All-Star appearance and being named the NBA’s Most Improved Player.

After learning so much from guys like Harden and Kyle Lowry, Maxey will become the teacher — and he has a willing pupil in McCain.

“For me, in college I obviously played more of an off-ball role,” McCain said. “So I think being able to learn on-ball stuff from Tyrese and being able to show that I can be on the ball, make reads in pick-and-rolls. … I think the mind is something a lot of people undervalue in the draft — just being able to figure out stuff, the IQ. I think I’m good at that, so I’m going to try to show that as much as I can in my rookie season.”

The moment has never been to big for McCain. He starred at Centennial High School in Corona, California, being named the state’s Gatorade Player of the Year as both a junior and senior. He was a McDonald’s All-American and a consensus five-star recruit.

He committed to Duke and had a monster one-and-done season. He was named to the ACC All-Rookie Team and was an All-ACC Honorable Mention. He set a Blue Devil freshman record by hitting eight threes in a game — and he did it twice (one of those times in the NCAA Tournament). His season-high 35 points has only been matched by Zion Williamson in school history for a freshman. He had three 30-point games — including two in the NCAA Tourney — which was most among all Division 1 freshman.

So, do you think McCain is ready for his opportunity in the NBA with the Sixers?

“Since high school, I’ve felt like I’ve always wanted to be on the biggest platforms, be on the biggest stages, and that’s why I chose Duke,” he said. “Now to be in Philly, to have those championship aspirations, I feel like I’m ready for it.

“I’ve always wanted to play in the big games and I feel like when the lights are the brightest, I want to show out and be myself out there on the court. I’m excited. It’s something I’ve looked forward to my entire life and now I’m finally here.”

He’s going to keep painting his nails. He’s going to keep making TikTok videos. He’s going to keep smiling.

But don’t let any of that fool you. Jared McCain wants to hoop.

“Obviously, now being a rookie, I’ve got a lot to prove, so I’m just willing to take on that challenge,” he said. “And once I set a goal, I’m going to put my mind to it and work as hard as I can to keep going. I think that mindset of always wanting to be the best always motivates me.”

Like Maxey before him, he has the chance to make a lot of people look silly for doubting him.

Sixers free agency and trade rumor roundup: Warriors pushing for Paul George, Clippers on clock, Brandon Ingram’s price & Kentavious Caldwell-Pope, Klay Thompson latest! sixers,free,agency,and,trade,rumor,roundup,warriors,pushing,for,paul,george,clippers,on,clock,brandon,ingram,s,price,kentavious,caldwell,pope,klay,thompson,latest,liberty,ballers,front-page,nba-free-agency,76ers-free-agency-rumors-news,76ers-trade-rumors

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The Sixers drafted a guard in Jared McCain in round one.

McCain already seems like a lot of fun, with an infectious personality and drive, reminiscent of the enchanting “he’ll smile dazzlingly while going full Mortal Kombat Kano fatality on you,” Tyrese Maxey.

McCain’s TikTok videos and nail polish all clearly belie a dude with an obvious hypomaniacal drive to perfect his footwork on movement triples. At 20 years old, the Duke product’s shooting form is already flawless, which makes it impossible not to reminisce about another Duke alum and former Sixer in JJ Redick — whose offseason and pregame form-work obsession was simply unmatched for the better part of two decades spanning the Lakers’ new head coach’s college freshman days as a Blue Devil through his final NBA season with the Dallas Mavericks.

In round two of the draft the Sixers selected big man, Adem “The Nigerian-Turkish Terminator” Bona, the hardest competitor in the entire draft (that nickname I cooked up isn’t working so you’d better help us workshop some better ones in the replies section below).

So with Joel Embiid, Maxey and McCain all penciled in, possessing options to retain Paul Reed, Jeff Downtin, Jr. and Ricky Council IV, they’ve got somewhere between 3-6 players in tow as Bona is still unsigned.

At 6 p.m. Eastern Sunday, teams can negotiate with rival free agents. Saturday is the deadline for Paul George, the NBA’s biggest story now, to opt in or out of his $48.7M player option with the Los Angeles Clippers.

What’s going to happen? Let’s get to the latest rumors.

KCP looking more and more likely to join the bell-ringing bunch

Photo by David Berding/Getty Images

Kentavious Caldwell-Pope makes a lot of sense for the Sixers. He is currently what they once hoped Danny Green could be for them.

He’s a multi-time champion who plays stalwart D and knocks down over 40 percent from distance on roughly four tries per battle. He’s willing to dive and get dirty, and doesn’t need the rock to be effective. The price won’t be cheap, but he’s a terrific fit that won’t force Daryl Morey to put all of his eggs in one basket. By signing KCP to a $20-plus million dollar deal, it would still leave room to sign another high-end free agent or two, plus a big-time trade acquisition as well — since the Sixers have over $60M to spend.

Jayson Tatum sure wouldn’t be as thrilled to have to square off against KCP as he would have facing Kyle Lowry or Tyrese Maxey; neither would Jalen Brunson.

It does not sound as if the Nuggets intend to retain the Thomaston, Georgia native’s services:

According to Marc Stein, via recent Substack newsletter:

“Denver’s Kentavious Caldwell-Pope is emerging as one of the focal points of NBA free agency. A difference-maker, league sources say, who suddenly appears more likely than not to switch teams. The Orlando Magic and the Philadelphia 76ers, meanwhile, appear especially well-positioned to capitalize on Caldwell-Pope’s expected availability if they choose. The Nuggets have been unable to come to terms on a contract extension with Caldwell-Pope, who is expected to decline his $15.4 million player option for next season to become a free agent before this season’s marketplace officially opens Sunday at 6 PM ET.”

Stein mentioned that the reigning West champs, the Dallas Mavericks, are also interested in landing the former Georgia Bulldog, but Denver has little interest in helping a team that recently supplanted them in the conference pecking order. Dallas almost certainly doesn’t have the cap space to make a winning KCP bid so they’d need help from the Nuggets via sign-and-trade. That seems farfetched.

With Paul George’s situation in flux, this KCP-to-Philly scenario is beginning to feel more and more realistic by the hour.

Klay Thompson ring that bell brother?

Philadelphia 76ers v Golden State Warriors

Photo by Noah Graham/NBAE via Getty Images

Stein continued:

“[Klay] Thompson is said to be seeking a three-year deal at a minimum. The cap space teams [Philadelphia and Orlando] are believed to prefer shorter contract structures than Thompson covets but can offset that with higher dollar amounts than teams like the Nuggets and Mavericks can muster.”

More on Klay from The Athletic. Sam Amick and Anthony Slater combined to confirm reports that the Sixers have interest in the five-time All-Star and four-time NBA Champion sniper.

Per Amick and Slater:

“A league source said Philadelphia has interest in Thompson. If the Nuggets lose free-agent-to-be Kentavious Caldwell-Pope, who has decided to decline his player option and enter the market, a league source said Denver has pegged Thompson as a possible replacement. Caldwell-Pope, as it were, is believed to be a strong possibility for Orlando. There are a handful of other rival teams also in play for Thompson, depending on his price tag.”

So if the Sixers were to sign KCP, that might diminish their ability to acquire Klay, creating scenarios where The Splash Brother lands in Denver (or Orlando). But Philly does sound interested in Thompson as a fallback plan, provided they could get him on a one or two-year deal; even if that short-term deal approached similar totals as the three-year iterations.

“Overpaying” for Klay (or KCP) on purpose, heading into a potential expiring contract by summer of ’25 or ’26 might also keep Philly’s big game-hunting options open since they’d have a solid player on a hefty short-term annual deal — helping to match for the next disgruntled star to seek a trade.

These types of “fallback plans” would also likely leave the Sixers more total spend if they intend to keep Kelly Oubre, Jr., De’Anthony Melton, or Buddy Hield; names expected to command more money than a Kyle Lowry or a Nico Batum.

So if Philadelphia executed a Jimmy Butler blockbuster by February via draft picks and large short term-deals for example, they might still be able to keep a few players on their current roster in addition; something they could probably not do if they sign Paul George outright next week.

And yeah, it’s no secret that Joel Embiid is simply dominant when there’s spacing around him, and who’s to say Thompson can’t thrive in a reduced role, as his catastrophic injuries wane further into the rearview mirror?

Brandon ‘Tiny Dog’ Ingram

New Orleans Pelicans v Philadelphia 76ers

Photo by Jesse D. Garrabrant/NBAE via Getty Images

Yahoo Sports’ Jake Fischer, a Liberty Ballers alum, offered the latest on Brandon Ingram — long connected to Philadelphia this offseason as another possible fallback plan.

Per Fischer:

“Ingram has been listed among Philadelphia’s targets this offseason, sources said, somewhere below George, although it’s not exactly clear where Ingram ranks among the Sixers’ proverbial group of wing targets to slot between Joel Embiid and Tyrese Maxey. In the event George spurns Philadelphia, the Sixers could easily acquire Ingram into their $60-plus million in cap space, but could Philly’s three first-round picks prove enough for Ingram?”

This is the first I’ve heard of a potential price tag discussed regarding Ingram to Philly.

It’s my current understanding that the Sixers can trade up to four first round-picks: 2026 (their own or the HOU/LAC/OKC pick), 2028 (their own or LAC’s), 2029, 2031.

They’d have to put some conditional language on the 2029 and 2031 picks, but there are swaps and possible second-rounders (which still occasionally hold considerable value as evidenced by day two of the 2024 NBA Draft). If Ingram could be had for three future firsts, would the Sixers pony up? If so, they’d still have some draft ammo remaining, as well as another ~$30Mish in cap space to work with. Former Lakers’ BI and KCP to P anyone?

High-stakes PG-13 game of chicken

LA Clippers v Philadelphia 76ers

Photo by Jesse D. Garrabrant/NBAE via Getty Images

Alas, no roundup is complete without the deluge of speculation regarding Paul George’s future.

According to Hoops Hype, ESPN’s Brian Windhorst recently offered the following, on a “Brian Windhorst & the Hoop Collective” pod:

“To my mind, there’s only three real options that I know about that Paul George really has. Stay in LA, which I would still put as the highest percentage chance of happening. Stay in LA for similar to what Kawhi got. Opt-in and trade, probably to the Warriors. The Warriors I know are interested in this. Third, sign straight up with the Sixers.”

And it’s sounding more and more like the Golden State Warriors could offer PG a max extension worth north of $212M should he opt in by Saturday — then quickly extend him upon trade; as well as the opportunity to remain on the West Coast — something that is reportedly quite important to the Cali native, who has family there.

But the Clippers may not want to take on Andrew Wiggins’ lengthy and exorbitant price tag. That makes Wigz a third-team trade candidate and has the Dubs playing some real hardball with the 2022 champ, apparently barring Maple Jordan from even taking part in the Olympic games, fearing an injury that could derail trade talks.

Still, Stein emphasizes that Steph Curry’s team is basically all-in on landing PG here.

The Golden State Warriors could also choose to guarantee Chris Paul’s $30M 2024-2025 salary and use him as trade bait.

But that doesn’t mean Clips’ owner Steve Ballmer and Team Prez Lawrence Frank have to cooperate in helping a Conference rival.

According to The Athletic’s John Hollinger:

“The cleanest way to do this would be to guarantee Chris Paul and Andrew Wiggins, except that would cap the Clippers at the first apron and make it impossible for them to re-sign James Harden. A simpler pathway would be to cut Paul and aggregate Wiggins, Gary Payton II and Moses Moody; the Warriors can also trade up to two first-round picks and three pick swaps to bait the hook for LA.

However, several other options exist if you prowl deeper in the weeds; for instance, it’s possible to do a Paul-Payton-Moody deal with the Clippers for George, trade Kevon Looney to a third team and get under the apron that way. Even more options exist if a Wiggins side deal emerges. The new complication of the tax apron has made putting together blockbusters a much more tangled, confusing business than it was 12 months ago.”

So the NBA world, Golden State, L.A., Philadelphia, and Orlando, in particular (but who knows what other teams may be lying in wait to pounce) will wait and see what George does next.

His opt in deadline is now a matter of hours away and this thing could be finalized swiftly, or drag on into the season. If the Clippers call PG’s bluff and he does opt out, would they then cave in and offer him a four-year, $200M deal, and then look to shop him between July and February?

Or even just keep him in the fold, new CBA-be-damned if they like how the team looks by Christmas?

Would they just take whatever deal the Warriors come up with in order to avoid a worst-case scenario where they get nothing, George walks, and Frank has to sell Leonard on a cap-space pipe dream by 2026?

We’re watching the clock closely on PG. And we’re starting to get a sense for what fallback plans may be in place for Joel Embiid and co. I’d be lying if I said it’s safe to feel too comfy about any one scenario playing out.

But my gut says the Clippers are smart enough to find some way to get something back for PG here. That helps the Warriors who should probably considered the favorites to land PG if he moves; and that should really limit Morey’s chances of hitting a cap-space homerun here. But still we’re in a holding pattern for good reason.

Sixers Summer League dates finalized as Vegas schedule is announced sixers,summer,league,dates,finalized,as,vegas,schedule,is,announced,liberty,ballers,front-page,76ers-schedule

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Now that the draft has come and gone, it’s time to see these guys take the court. The NBA announced today its schedule for this year’s Vegas Summer League, a tournament in which all 30 teams participate it.

The Sixers’ first contest in Vegas this year will be on July 13, three days after they’ll conclude the Salt Lake City summer league.

Their first contest will be against the Detroit Pistons at 7 p.m. ET. They’ll take on the Portland Trail Blazers next on the 15th at 8:30 and the Minnesota Timberwolves the next day at 8. They’ll wrap up the round robin portion of play on the 19th when they take on the San Antonio Spurs.

Philadelphia could have a pretty intriguing squad this summer, one that’ll likely feature Terquavion Smith and Ricky Council IV. On top of draft picks Jared McCain and Adem Bona joining the squad, the team just added two more undrafted free agents on the wing in Justin Edwards and David Jones.

Sixers 2024 NBA Draft grades roundup: Rating the Jared McCain and Adem Bona picks sixers,nba,draft,grades,roundup,rating,the,jared,mccain,and,adem,bona,picks,liberty,ballers,front-page,76ers-draft-rumors-news

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Well, after plenty of build-up and speculation over who the Sixers could draft or what trades they could make, the 2024 NBA Draft is in the books. The Sixers kept both their picks in the end, opting to select 6-foot-2 sharpshooting guard Jared McCain from Duke with their 16th overall pick, and the super athletic UCLA big man Adem Bona at 41 in the second round.

As the draft came to a close, the Sixers didn’t wait around on the undrafted market either. They quickly agreed to a two-way deal with Philly native Justin Edwards, a 6-foot-8 wing with a smooth shooting stroke who’s well worth taking a shot on. They’ve also agreed to sign Memphis wing David Jones on a two-way deal, and big man Max Fiedler to an Exhibit-10 deal, per Jon Chepkevich of DraftExpress.

There’s a lot to like about the skills and upside the Sixers’ two picks are bringing to the team, so let’s see what different draft experts think of McCain and Bona, and how they grade the Sixers’ draft.

(Spoiler alert: it’s very good.)

ESPN

Grade: A-

We’ll start things off on a high note, with ESPN’s Kevin Pelton’s A- for the Sixers’ draft overall. Pelton even had McCain ranked as his eighth-best prospect, making the sharpshooter a bit of a steal at 16:

The stat-minded Sixers landing McCain, my eighth-ranked prospect, at No. 16 is no surprise. McCain’s shooting (41% on nearly six 3-point attempts per game) should fit well on a team that needs to space the floor for Joel Embiid. I do wonder how much McCain (6-2 barefoot) will be able to play alongside 6-2 Philadelphia starter Tyrese Maxey. However, getting value is more important in the long term than questions of fit.

Bona wasn’t quite as strong by my projections, but there’s a lot to like about his defensive potential after he blocked 2.7 shots and came up with 1.7 steals per 40 minutes as a sophomore. Compare those with Sixers backup Paul Reed, who averaged 2.3 blocks and 1.3 steals per 40 when he was a sophomore at DePaul.

SB Nation

Grade: B+ for first round, A for second round

Here at SB Nation, Ricky O’Donnell’s first round analysis made a fair comment regarding McCain’s smaller build and limited athleticism, but had high praise for the shooting skillset he brings:

McCain lacks ideal NBA size and athleticism for a guard, but he makes up for it with shooting. He has a deep range and fantastic accuracy as a three-point shooter, which should be a good fit around Tyrese Maxey’s drives to the rim and Joel Embiid’s interior creation. I worry that McCain might be a too small to be a long-term backcourt partner for Maxey, but his shooting is so good that this is a perfectly fine selection.

As for O’Donnell’s second round grades, he was even higher on Philly picking up Bona:

Bona was one of my favorite second round bets as a long, strong, and explosive center. Bona crushed the glass and hammered dunks throughout his sophomore year at UCLA, and showed off his physical gifts by jumping 40-inches at the combine. He’s short for a center and doesn’t have much perimeter skill, but Bona is a freak athlete and that’s worth betting on.

Sporting News

Grade: A

Kyle Irving at Sporting News was a big fan of both of the Sixers’ selections:

The 76ers addressed two needs with their two picks: McCain provides backcourt depth as a playmaking combo guard who can shoot the 3 and disrupt opposing ball-handlers on defense while Bona gives Philadelphia a much-needed physical interior presence behind Joel Embiid. The Sixers went 2-for-2 in this draft.

The Ringer

Grade: B for first round, B- for second round

Danny Chau, grading the Sixers’ 16th overall pick, said Jared McCain has shades of somewhere between Steph and Seth Curry, which certainly isn’t a bad spot to fall on for a scale of undersized yet highly talented shooters.

A team with the gravity that Joel Embiid and Tyrese Maxey command will always need release valves on the perimeter. That’s the value that McCain brings. He was one of the best 3-point marksmen in college basketball as a freshman at Duke. He is elite on catch-and-shoot attempts and has great energy transfer in his mechanics pulling up in transition. The Sixers may look to develop his ability to shoot off movement because McCain’s apparent lack of burst will put a strain on the kind of playmaking he was able to accomplish at the NCAA level…

As for picking Bona in round two, Chau was slightly cooler on the selection, giving the Sixers a B-, partly due to need concerns. But there’s still no denying how impressive Bona’s explosiveness, speed and lateral quickness are. He’s one of the very best athletes in the draft with serious defensive talent, even if Chau questions the Sixers’ need for this kind of player:

Though a bit undersized at the 5, Bona’s remarkable 7-foot-4 wingspan and seamless ability to change direction laterally make him one of the easier projections as a switch big. Outside of the occasional P.J. Brown–esque midrange jumper, Bona’s offensive game is mostly limited to explosive rim runs, but a pathway to success in the modern NBA has been paved for a player of that archetype. Bona is a real defensive talent, but it’s fair to wonder how much Philadelphia needed this type of player specifically.

However, as Daryl Morey continues to make clear, he’s going to take the best player available, regardless of fit. And if the Sixers aren’t happy with Paul Reed at backup 5 long term or if he gets moved at some point, having Bona onboard for his athleticism, versatile defense, energy and simple yet effective finishing gives them another interesting option.

Bona is still only 21 years old and started basketball late too, which bodes well for how quickly he’s developed already and could continue to do so. For instance, with skills like the face-up ability he’s flashed thanks to his speed, quick elevation, and length to rise up and finish over/past opponents.

The Ringer’s Kevin O’Connor is even higher on not just Bona’s ability, but his potential to fit in different lineups for the Sixers.

CBS Sports

Grade: B+ for first round, A- for second round

Apart from knocking the Sixers’ first-round grade slightly as star Tennessee wing Dalton Knecht was still on the board (and ultimately went to the Lakers next at 17), Kyle Boone and Adam Finkelstein at CBS Sports were still high on the team’s picks overall:

If Dalton Knecht weren’t on the board, I’d bump this up a grade. But I love what McCain brings as a shooter and scorer and personality. Defensively, he and Tyrese Maxey may not be ideal as two smaller guards who focus on offense. But there’s a lot to like, and adding shooting around Joel Embiid makes sense. And his competitive spirit is worth betting on.

As for their thoughts on Bona, they understandably highlighted the rookie’s energy, massive wingspan, and presence he can offer as a finisher and rim protector:

Philly has been trying for years to find viable frontcourt support next to Joel Embiid, and it might have stumbled into something here. Bona’s a high-flier with relentless energy as a big who brings a 7-4 wingspan and can be impactful around the rim on both ends.

Yahoo! Sports

Grade: A

Short and sweet analysis from Yahoo! Sports’ Krysten Peek, but yet another top grade for Philadelphia’s picks:

The 3-point shooting from McCain (42% from deep at Duke) and the physical presence of Bona (6-8, 245 pounds) will pair nicely with Tyrese Maxey and Joel Embiid.

Well, B’s and A’s across the board is a rather good result!

Now, it’s a time to dig into more analysis of the Sixers’ new rookies. We’ve already got you covered here at Liberty Ballers, with articles like Sean Kennedy’s look at Jared McCain’s fit with the Sixers, with comments from McCain himself and Daryl Morey. Plus Josh Grieb’s piece on how ready McCain is for anything that comes his way in Philadelphia.

Report: Sixers to sign Max Fiedler to Exhibit 10 deal after NBA Draft report,sixers,to,sign,max,fiedler,to,exhibit,deal,after,nba,draft,liberty,ballers,front-page,76ers-free-agency-rumors-news

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As we’ve learned in recent years, the conclusion of the second round of the NBA draft often begins a flurry of activity among undrafted free agents. Many player agents now prefer to tell teams not to draft players, preferring to have their clients enter the open market and steer them to a place with a preferred situation or path to playing time. Following the conclusion of Thursday’s second round (during which the Sixers selected big man Adem Bona with the 41st overall pick), Daryl Morey and the Philadelphia front office reached two-way contract agreements with Justin Edwards and David Jones.

With Philadelphia’s third and final two-way slot occupied by Terquavion Smith, the organization used another method of incentivizing undrafted free agents to join the fold in bringing in Rice’s Max Fiedler.

As your obligatory reminder on Exhibit 10 deals, they are non-guaranteed but carry the option for teams to convert them to two-way contracts, with players receiving a bonus if they are waived and report to the team’s G League affiliate. Teams can utilize up to six active Exhibit 10 contracts at once.

Fiedler averaged 9.3 points, 9.3 rebounds, 5.3 assists, 0.8 blocks, and 0.8 steals last year as a fifth-year senior. As Jon Chepkevich notes in his tweet reporting the signing, Fiedler is extremely adept as a distributor from the nail, interesting in that Joel Embiid often occupies a similar role within the Sixers’ offense. However, shooting range to the three-point line is not a part of Fiedler’s game, nor is a strong degree of rim protection. He is a solid rebounder, though, which has definitely been an area of weakness for the Sixers.

With Paul Reed’s status with the Sixers still undetermined, and the team using a second-round pick on Bona, Fiedler has a narrow path to working his way up with the big club. We’ll see what he can do in Summer League play, and if he can usurp one of the two-way slots (either outplaying one of the other UDFA signings or if Terq earns himself a full NBA contract). Likelier, Fiedler may end up a fixture with the Delaware Blue Coats this season.

Sixers roster, salaries, cap space, available draft picks and more sixers,roster,salaries,cap,space,available,draft,picks,and,more,liberty,ballers,front-page,76ers-roster,nba-rosters-salaries-cap-space-draft-picks

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The Sixers are heading into a kind of important offseason, in case you haven’t heard.

Joel Embiid is the Sixers’ only player under guaranteed contract beyond the 2023-24 season. Tyrese Maxey will join him soon enough, but Paul Reed’s $7.7 million salary for next season is now non-guaranteed since the Sixers didn’t win a playoff series. Ricky Council IV, whom the Sixers signed to a four-year, $7.4 million deal at the end of the regular season, is fully non-guaranteed for next season, while the Sixers have a team option on Jeff Dowtin Jr.

So, where does that leave the Sixers heading into the offseason? We’re partnering with SalarySwish to use their data and help answer every question you have about the Sixers’ financial situation and what it might mean in free agency.

We’ll make updates here as the offseason rolls along, so bookmark this page to keep up on the latest changes moving forward.

Sixers Roster, Salaries, Draft Picks, Cap Space and More

Here’s a table with all of the Sixers’ salary information, courtesy of our friends at SalarySwish:

That’s a lot of information to sift through, so let’s dive into a few key notes.

FAQ

Let’s start with the one on everyone’s mind.

How much salary cap space can the Sixers have this offseason?

The Sixers can generate up to nearly $65 million in cap room this summer. To do so, they’d have to waive Reed and Council, decline their option on Dowtin, trade No. 16 overall pick Jared McCain without taking any salary back and renounce every free agent they have, including Buddy Hield, De’Anthony Melton, Nic Batum and Tobias Harris. (Sixers fans will surely be devastated about the last name there.)

Barring a surprise trade, it seems like the Sixers plan to keep McCain. There’s no reason to waive Council, either, as his salary ($1.9 million) isn’t much more expensive than an incomplete roster charge ($1.2 million). If the Sixers do keep both McCain and Council, they can still create up to $61.3 million in cap space this summer.

They could also operate as an over-the-cap team by keeping their free agents’ cap holds on their books until they re-sign in Philly or head elsewhere. That could give them access to the $12.9 million non-taxpayer mid-level exception and $4.7 million bi-annual exception, but using either one would subject them to a $178.7 million hard cap for the rest of the season.

The Sixers figure to split the difference by opening some cap space but retaining a few of their free agents along with Maxey. It’s unclear which players they’ll prioritize or how much they’ll be willing to spend on each of them, but they’ll have plenty of external options to pursue as well.

That isn’t just limited to free agency, either. In fact, cap space could be more valuable than usual this summer if some teams decide to shed quality players for financial reasons. We’ve already begun to see that with the likes of Davion Mitchell, Wendell Moore Jr. and AJ Griffin.

How much will the Sixers pay in luxury taxes this year?

As of now, nothing. The Sixers did everything in their power to keep it that way, too.

After signing Darius Bazley, Kai Jones and DJ Wilson to 10-day contracts worth roughly $116,000 each, Dowtin to a rest-of-season contract for $127,000 and Council for an extra $864,000 this year, the Sixers were projected to finish roughly $755,000 below the $165.3 million tax line at the end of the regular season.

The problem from the Sixers’ perspective was the $1.1 million in unlikely-to-be-earned incentives in Hield’s contract. If he achieved all of those—one of them was making it to the NBA Finals this year, for what it’s worth—the Sixers could have finished a little too close to the tax line for comfort. That’s why the Sixers staggered their signings to ensure that they were at no risk of going back into tax territory.

One silver lining of the Sixers’ first-round exit is that they will officially stay below the tax this year, which means they’ll reset the clock on the repeater tax. They now can’t be subject to it until 2027-28 at the earliest, which should give the new-look core that they assemble this offseason a 3-4 year window.

What draft picks can the Sixers trade?

The Sixers can currently trade first-round picks in the following drafts:

  • 2026 (their own, protected 5-30, or the OKC/LAC/HOU pick)
  • 2028 (their own, protected 9-30, or an unprotected LAC pick)
  • 2029 OR 2030 (not both)
  • 2031 (if they don’t trade 2030)

The Sixers owe a top-six-protected pick to the San Antonio Spurs in 2025 and a top-eight-protected pick to the Brooklyn Nets in 2027. The Stepien Rule, which prohibits teams from going back-to-back drafts without a first-round pick, limits what other picks they can trade.

They also have the right to swap first-round picks with the Los Angeles Clippers in 2029 (top-three protected). Considering that all three of the Clippers’ stars are in their mid-30s and two of them are set to become free agents after a disappointing first-round exit, those could wind up being valuable swap rights.

Additionally, the Sixers can currently trade the following second-round draft picks:

  • 2027 Bucks pick
  • 2028 Pistons pick (top-55 protected)
  • 2029 Sixers pick
  • 2030 Sixers pick

They can’t trade their 2027 or 2028 second-round picks for now because they’re tied up conditionally in the first-round picks that they owe to the Spurs and Nets. If their 2025 first-round pick conveys to the Spurs next summer, they will be able to trade their 2027 second-round pick afterward. The same goes for their 2028 second-round pick if their 2027 or 2028 first-rounder conveys to the Nets.

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2024: NBA Draft: Sixers reportedly agree with Memphis’ David Jones on two-way deal nba,draft,sixers,reportedly,agree,with,memphis,david,jones,on,two,way,deal,liberty,ballers,front-page,nba-draft,76ers-draft-rumors-news

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The Sixers made out well in the 2024 NBA Draft, selecting Duke’s Jared McCain 16th overall and UCLA big man Adem Bona 41st. They also moved quickly to sign Philly native and Kentucky product Justin Edwards to a two-way deal.

Daryl Morey and company aren’t quite done yet. The Sixers are reportedly signing Memphis wing David Jones to a two-way deal. The news was first reported by Keith Pompey of The Inquirer.

A native of the Dominican Republic, Jones moved to the United States to attend high school in West Virginia and play basketball. He spent parts of two seasons at DePaul before transferring to St. John’s, but his final season playing for the Tigers was his best collegiate season.

In 2023-24, Jones averaged 21.8 points, 7.6 rebounds and 1.8 assists per game. He also averaged 2.2 steals per game. He didn’t shoot the ball particularly well at the start of his college career, but hit 38.0% on over six attempts per game from three last season. His free throw percentage went up each year, meaning the improvement could be real.

After taking an undersized guard in McCain and a big in Bona, Morey scooped up two wings on the open market. It’s surely a coincidence, but Jones is a lefty like Edwards. Jones is an interesting prospect with his shot improvement plus his rebounding and steal numbers on the wing.

The Summer Sixers should have a fun roster with the players that have been added over the past couple days in addition to Ricky Council IV and Terquavion Smith.

2024 NBA Draft: In the second round, Sixers select UCLA big man Adem Bona at pick 41 nba,draft,in,the,second,round,sixers,select,ucla,big,man,adem,bona,at,pick,liberty,ballers,front-page,nba-draft,76ers-draft-rumors-news

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In the first day two of NBA Draft history Thursday, the Sixers took UCLA big man Adem Bona with the 41st overall pick.

He averaged 12.4 points, 5.9 rebounds and 1.8 blocks per game for the Bruins last season. He was named the Pac-12 Defensive Player of the Year for the 2023-24 season.

In Bona, the Sixers acquire arguably the best athlete in the draft. He had the highest standing vertical of any player at the NBA Draft Combine. He also has legitimate NBA size at 6-foot-8 (without shoes) and a freakish 7-4 wingspan. He’s a strong rim protector, but also possesses the ability to switch on the perimeter.

Bona is a native of Nigeria, but moved to Turkey at the age of 13 to pursue basketball. He moved to the U.S. to play high school basketball at Prolific Prep in California. He was a five-star recruit and committed to UCLA, where he spent two seasons.

He’s raw, but Bona is one of the most physically gifted players in the draft class. As Daryl Morey has made clear, he’s going to take the best player available, regardless of fit or age.

A side note: this is the pick the Sixers acquired in the deal that sent Jaden Springer to the Boston Celtics at the trade deadline.

On Wednesday night, the Sixers selected Duke’s Jared McCain 16th overall. While there are still plenty of moving parts ahead of the start free agency Sunday, we might have some roster clarity. Joel Embiid and Tyrese Maxey will be here. For now, so are McCain and Bona.

2024 NBA Draft: Sixers sign Philly native, UDFA Justin Edwards to two-way deal nba,draft,sixers,sign,philly,native,udfa,justin,edwards,to,two,way,deal,liberty,ballers,front-page,nba-draft,76ers-draft-rumors-news

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Now that the 2024 NBA Draft is complete, the Sixers turn their attention to the undrafted free agent market.

The team moved quickly, agreeing to a two-way deal with Philly native and Kentucky product Justin Edwards, a source confirmed to Liberty Ballers. Shams Charania of The Athletic was the first to report the news.

Edwards was named Pennsylvania’s Mr. Basketball in 2023 after leading Imhotep to a second straight state championship. Joined by Camden’s D.J. Wagner, he was part of yet another impressive recruiting class for Kentucky. The 6-foot-8 wing was a consensus five-star recruit with multiple outlets considering him a top-three player in the country.

Though Edwards came to college with much fanfare, he had an inconsistent one-and-done year with the Wildcats. In his lone season in Lexington, the 20-year-old Edwards averaged 8.8 points and 3.4 rebounds per game with 48.6/36.5/77.6 shooting splits. He was overshadowed by fifth-year senior Antonio Reeves and a pair of top-10 picks in Reed Sheppard (No. 3 overall, Houston Rockets) and Rob Dillingham (No. 8 overall, Minnesota Timberwolves (via trade)).

In Edwards, the Sixers get a long wing with a smooth lefty shooting strike. He’ll have to refine the rest of his game, but he’s absolutely the type of player worthy of a two-way spot. At this time last year, Daryl Morey and the front office landed Ricky Council IV and Terquavion Smith as undrafted free agents. Council earned minutes as a rookie and Smith shined in the G League for the Delaware Blue Coats.

This should add even more intrigue to the team’s Summer League team. Expect Council and Smith to join the newly-acquired Edwards, Jared McCain and Adem Bona in Vegas and Utah.

Does Portland’s Jerami Grant make sense as a Sixers trade target? does,portland,s,jerami,grant,make,sense,as,a,sixers,trade,target,liberty,ballers,front-page,76ers-free-agency-rumors-news,76ers-trade-rumors

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Day one of the 2024 NBA Draft is in the books and the Philadelphia 76ers chose Duke’s Jared McCain, No. 16 overall — and no, they did not trade him….yet!

Daryl Morey, known to partake in more than a bit of gamesmanship, has already spoken about the 20-year-old, 6-foot-2 sniper as a player the team hopes is around for a long-time.

And McCain himself sounds like he’s prepared for a fanbase that can be notoriously love-hate: “Obviously [playing at Duke] comes with a lot of hate and a lot of scrutiny wherever you go,” McCain said, “but I think that’s preparing for where I’m at, especially with Philly, so I think I’m ready for it.”

So the Sixers have a couple of players on the roster. Three or four down, just need another 11 or 12 and they’ll be ready to roll.

One player whose name has come up is Portland Trailblazers forward Jerami Grant. Ten years ago, Grant was the No. 39 overall pick in the 2014 NBA Draft. Former Sixers’ President Sam Hinkie took Grant 36 spots after he landed Joel Embiid and 27 spots after selecting Dario Sarić.

On Thursday, before the start of the second day of the draft (where the Sixers are set to pick No. 41) Zach Lowe hosted “The Lowe Post” with fellow ESPN NBA Insider Jonathan Givony.

With the draft’s first round behind them, how will the Sixers fill out what’s nearly a full team’s worth of roster spots?

Lowe speculated about three names in particular in case Los Angeles Clippers’ star Paul George doesn’t end up joining them. Per Lowe:

“[Jimmy Butler may be] going back to Miami, OG Anunoby re-signed with the Knicks, other players that would have been free agents this year never got to free agency, notably Jrue Holiday. Philadelphia is running out of targets for the cap space. And the biggest story now in the NBA will get some clarity on Saturday — I wouldn’t say clarity, some version of clarity. And that’s when Paul George’s deadline is to opt in or opt out of his player option for next year…. I now have officially no feel for what’s gonna happen with Paul George…

Well, I guess his having no idea offers a little more hope they can still sign George than ESPN’s Brian Windhorst offered Wednesday. Notice Windy’s recent use of the past tense, and even tire violence:

So maybe there is still a chance there?

But if not, Lowe continues:

“….And I know Philadelphia is sitting there with this cap space and 25 percent of an NBA roster, sitting there knowing ‘we’ve gotta do something with that space to compete with Boston and now New York, and probably Milwaukee and maybe Indiana, and Cleveland…,the rest of the East. I’m sure they’ve got plans D, E and F. People have whispered Brandon Ingram, people have whispered Jerami Grant, neither of those are as exciting to me as Paul George. I don’t know what the hell is gonna happen here but we’re gonna get some clarity there on Saturday….”

Lowe goes on to mention that the Golden State Warriors will provide some clarity by Friday, when Chris Paul’s $30M salary could become guaranteed, and “obviously” they’ll look to trade the 12-time All-Star. Golden State is connected to George now as well, in the event George opts in and seeks a trade. Lowe says that CP3 decision will impact Klay Thompson’s free agency, and that while Lowe has “given up trying to read the tea leaves” on PG, another option is for the Sixers to look to sign a couple players like a Kentavious Caldwell-Pope, plus a “player X, Y, and Z.”

We’ve discussed Ingram and KCP at length in the past, but we have not heard many (if any) of these Jerami Grant whispers. Grant, now 30 years old, shot over 40 percent from distance, on over five 3PA per game in 117 games with the Blazers since 2022.

He averaged 21 points, 3.5 rebounds, 2.8 assists on 45-40-82 shooting splits. It’s probably pretty tricky to truly evaluate players on 21-win teams (Grant comically coming full circle from his Process days) now up in Oregon. But there has been some sentiment that his defense has slipped in recent years (hovering around 112-114 def. rating in Denver and Detroit, now just 120 Drtg in Portland).

But the Sixers would obviously have to watch the tape to see how much of a 3-and-D player there is here and wonder if he couldn’t slow down names like Jaylen Brown or Jayson Tatum in playoff environments. Grant signed a $160M five-year deal just over a year ago. Many fans interpreted that move as a silly, failed attempt to keep Damian Lillard, now in Milwaukee, happy in Portland.

Grant is set to earn $29.7M in 2024-2025, and his annual raises bring his player option for the 2027-2028 up to $36.4M. Grant will turn 31 just four days before Joel Embiid will, as the two Pisces were born just days apart after swimming in different career directions.

Fun fact-story…. Hinkie drafted Grant then later Bryan Colangelo traded JG to OKC for a future pick. Colangelo quickly used that pick to move up to draft some dude who never came over (for the Sixers) named Anžejs Pasečņiks It was the same year Colangelo traded Hinkie’s bequeathed No. 3 pick and prized Kings’ 2019 pick to Boston for Markelle Fultz. By 2018, when Burnergate broke and Fultz busted, acting GM Elton Brand traded Markelle for the pick that would eventually become Tyrese Maxey. So thank you to Hinkie, Jerami, Elton, and, of course, Mike Muscala.

Grant isn’t a sexy name. He’s substantially overpaid and he’s a stunningly poor rebounder for a player with his size and athleticism.

But when you begin to consider that names like Kentavious Caldwell-Pope may be eyeing their own $25M contracts, maybe this one isn’t regarded as terribly as it was one summer ago?

Another way to sell yourself on a move like this would be to ask questions like the following:

  • How much worse might JG really be than PG? Could that gap narrow over the next four years?
  • How much better if at all is Brandon Ingram? How much cheaper would JG be to obtain?
  • How much better than JG is Mikal Bridges? Mikal posts some pretty comparable statistics, and yet the Nova stud fetched the Nets an even larger haul from the Knicks than they once got for Kevin Durant. Could Grant be an “arbitrage Mikal,” who allows you to save or even add picks, still leaving another ~$30M in salary?
  • Who else could you pair with JG with this summer that you couldn’t if you splurge on names like PG, OG or BI? Could a Grant-KCP duo, while retaining the picks, be better than BI acquired via some of those draft picks?
  • Would the Blazers offer flippable assets or even another helpful player in order to get that salary off their books?

How am I doing? Am I selling too hard? Whose idea was it that cap space and the thought of playing with Embiid and Maxey under Nick Nurse was going to lure stars to Philly anyway?

All food for thought, and again, this is just whispers. But I can tell you this…. if Grant returns to Philly, the Process coming full circle bits will be lit. And we’ll be forced to once again revisit how far the Colangelo takeover set this team back.