The season really comes down to how healthy Embiid and George are in the playoffs and how well Tyrese Maxey plays.
If these three don’t play well, we should not expect much.
To have a successful season, though, we need some other players to contribute down the stretch and in the playoffs.
Three other players outside of George, Embiid, and Maxey could make the difference for us this year.
Caleb Martin
Going into the offseason, the Sixers had an obvious need at PF. Signing Caleb Martin and Paul George will help that position. Hopefully, George can stay at the 3, and Martin can solidify his starting position at the 4. He’s an undersized PF, but he can hold his own. He can create a shot here and there, but more importantly, he does the little things that hold a team together. In 20 minutes of preseason play against the Hawks, he scored only 7 points, but he had 4 rebounds, 2 assists, and a block. He’s not lighting up the score sheet, but he does what he needs to do to win.
The bulk of the stats should come from the big 3, but contributions from Martin (especially when Embiid and George inevitably miss time) could help propel this team to a stronger finish this year.
Guerschon Yabusele
As I’ve said before, the Yabusele signing could benefit the Sixers’ rotation a ton. With an already diminished and undersized PF position, the Sixers signed Yabusele after an impressive showing at the Paris Olympics this summer. Standing 6’8” and 260 pounds, Yabusele comes with more of a natural build for a PF. He has the power and strength to finish at the rim and (more importantly) grab rebounds.
If Embiid has one flaw, it’s rebounding. We don’t even want him to rebound anyway. That’s what players like Yabusele can do for us. Yabusele can come in and strengthen the Sixers’ greatest weakness. Nobody expects great things from Yabusele, but if he can grab rebounds and provide some offensive and defensive energy, he will be a strong asset for this team.
Andre Drummond
Lastly, the third player on whom the season hinges is Andre Drummond.
Earlier this week, Embiid said he “would probably never play back-to-backs the rest of [his] career.” If true, then Andre Drummond has multiple starts already planned this year, regardless of injury. Then, factoring in injury, Drummond most likely will start 20 or more games this year. Embiid’s sole focus is to stay healthy for the playoffs, which gives Drummond greater responsibility this year than if he had backed up any other center in the league.
Drummond will not score anywhere close to as much as Embiid does – nobody expects him to either. Paul Geroge and Tyrese Maxey get paid enough to score without Embiid in the lineup. Drummond needs to control the pain on defense and grab rebounds on both sides of the court to make his impact known. He doesn’t have to score to make a huge impact. A dunk here and there would be nice but not needed.
PHOTO: Brett Davis/Imagn Images
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