Basketball season will be here before you know it. After a busy offseason, let’s take a look at how the Sixers’ wing rotation could shake out.
OK, so maybe it’s not way too early. Believe it or not, the Sixers will be back on the court for regular season basketball in just two months.
So, with another offseason of heavy roster turnover, the local basketball team will look a lot different in how they line up next season.
By maximizing the star potential on this roster by adding Paul George, the Sixers were limited in how they were able to fill out the rest of the roster, thanks in large part to new salary cap restrictions (everyone must be tired of hearing about aprons by this point.)
With the team signing Olympic standout Guerschon Yabusele, the roster they’ll start training camp with appears to be set. So, let’s breakdown the different ways the Sixers will try to maximize their big three of George, Joel Embiid and Tyrese Maxey.
The Wings
This is where things could get really funky. While the starting lineup features three proven commodities, there isn’t a ton of experience coming off the bench. Their two most tenured bench wings are KJ Martin, someone the team has signed with almost expressed intent of trading at this deadline, and Yabusele, who hasn’t played in an NBA game since 2019.
While it doesn’t appear that Martin factors into the team’s long-term plans, the Sixers will certainly want to get the most out of him in the short term. After all, if the plan is to trade him for a piece that fits better or has more experience, they’ll have to maximize his value to do that.
Martin found a bit of a spot for himself as a small-ball five last year, and may have to do something similar this year. If he is primarily used in the second unit, his inability to shoot makes him a tough fit next to Andre Drummond or Adem Bona.
Outside of Martin, the team only really has Yabusele and Ricky Council IV who are big enough to play forward positions off the bench. Council could get a lot of opportunity to take a lot of those minutes. He’s shown steady progression since he’s been in the organization, and the team may need him to be ready to slide into the rotation as early as this season.
Yabusele should also get plenty of opportunities to earn his way back into the league. As he showed in the Olympics, he appears to be in much better shape than his first go around. Whether he’s able to adjust to a slightly further three-point line will likely determine whether he’s able to contribute to this team or not.