Free agency is the most manic, drama-filled period on the NBA calendar. And this year certainly didn’t disappoint in both its overall activity and potential paradigm shifting. Brooklyn is now the center of the basketball world in New York. The Knicks had the summer of nightmares. The Jazz are looking like legitimate contenders in the West. And the Celtics didn’t have the dream offseason they thought they’d have (lol).

Oh, and we still don’t even have a decision from a certain Kawhi Leonard. If you haven’t heard, he’s pretty good at basketball.

The Sixers found themselves in the middle of all this. Everyone knew what was at stake this time around. Three-fifths of a starting lineup that was quite possibly a quadruple doink away from the Eastern Conference Finals was on the open market. And it was going to take much more than a couple Benjamins to ensure that Jimmy Butler, Tobias Harris, and JJ Redick all returned.

I personally was all for running it back. For one, it’s not my money. Plus, we all saw what an Embiid / Simmons / Butler / Redick / Harris lineup was capable of doing in the 21 combined regular season and playoff games they played in. They were starting to build some serious chemistry towards the end there, and who knows what they could accomplish in a full season together.

What transpired was yet another re-haul of the lineup which actually improved the overall outlook of this team.


Let’s recap to this point, after the jump:

JJ Heads South

Not an ideal start to the evening!

Losing a guy like JJ is tough. Defensive shortcomings and age aside, there were times throughout the season when he looked like the 2nd option on offense. The dribble hand-offs he ran with Joel were some of the most effective actions they ran all year. He is still a very lethal shooter, and had the highest scoring season of his career at the age of 34 (18.1 PPG).

It’ll be interesting to see how Elton Brand goes about addressing the hole he leaves in the Sixers’ perimeter game. Their spacing will not be the same.

Tobi Decides to Run it Back (x5)

This was a no-brainer. If Jimmy was all but gone (we’ll get to that in a little), locking up Tobias long-term was Elton’s top priority, and he got it done.

A lot of people aren’t fans of this deal, and it’s understandable. It’s a lot of money committed to a guy many consider to be a “borderline All-Star” who has also played for five different teams in his eight-year career. But the Sixers almost had no choice but to ensure that he re-signed given how much they gave up for him (chiefly Landry Shamet, two 1st-round picks, and two 2nd-round picks).

With that being said, I think a full year with this team will serve Tobias much better. He had to be relegated to the 3rd or 4th option a good majority of last season with Jimmy and JJ in the starting lineup. With their departures, Tobias will be relied upon a whole lot more to provide some instant offense. Yeah, his shooting from deep dipped after the trade, but he still shot just under 40% from long-range. He can still effectively create his own shot, is a good ball-handler, and can back down shorter defenders.

Plus, I just think Tobias finally having some long-term stability will do wonders for his productivity. He’s only 26, and is right there on the Ben and Joel timeline.

The Mike Scott Hive Lives On

This one made a lot of people (including myself) extremely happy. Mike Scott has firmly entrenched himself in this city and its culture, so seeing him come back, especially after him expressing his desire to do so in his exit interview, is awesome.

Memes aside, he’s going to be a key guy off the bench as additional depth at the four. He can be streaky at times as a shooter, but he still shot 41% from three following his arrival from the Clippers. Plus, he’s the guy you want on your side when things get testy.

Mike Scott Hive stand up!

Out Goes Jimmy, In Comes Josh

I can’t lie, this threw me for a loop. Call me naive, but when you think about everything we heard about Jimmy being a virtual lock to return if the 5-year max was on the table, which it turns out it was, I was convinced they were running it back with him.

But it wasn’t meant to be, and Jimmy is now in South Beach.

To be clear, I don’t hate the guy. I’ll never hate him. He made a clear lifestyle choice, and I don’t think anyone can fault him for that. I’m only upset at him trying to portray himself as being the “realest out there” and “all about winning”, only to make a move like this. That’s my only criticism.

Basketball-wise, it’s obviously another tough loss. Jimmy was far from a perfect fit, but he was a guy this team could turn to in tough situations. It’s going to be hard to replace both his late-game and defensive chops.

Getting Josh Richardson in return, though, is huge. Not only is he probably a more seamless fit than Butler, he’s someone the fans are going to love. He plays tough perimeter defense, can knock down shots from deep, and can serve as a secondary creator on offense.

And to top it all off, he’s on a very team-friendly contract. The Sixers have him locked up through 2021 and will only have paid him around $21 million to that point, providing even more financial flexibility. So overall, it’s very good compensation for losing Jimmy.

Average Al Comes Aboard

I despise all things Boston, and Horford, like many other Sixers fans, caught the brunt of my ire. He was by far Joel’s biggest kryptonite the last two years or so, and now he joins forces with the same guy he frustrated for so long.

Horford is the present-day Shane Battier: very good, not great, at a lot of things, doesn’t post gaudy numbers, but makes all the right plays. He’s the ultimate glue-guy, someone who would bore the casual fan. He was integral to the Celtics’ success thanks to his smart play, smart defense, and good shooting.

He makes for an interesting fit. Him and Joel are going to wreak havoc in the front court on defense. He’ll help to further space the floor, and he will provide another trustworthy option as both a down low presence and a playmaker. His occupying virtually the same space as Joel is worrying, but they should work that out.

There are some legitimate concerns. His contract has the potential to age very poorly. Horford is 33, and despite still being a very effective player, is bound to decline at some point. The Sixers are going to be paying him over $26 million by the time he’s 36, and who knows how productive he’ll be by then.

Despite these worries, he’s going to fit fine, and most importantly, he’s going to be an excellent locker room presence for this team. He’s a true leader and is a seasoned playoff vet (every team he’s played on in his 12 seasons in the league has made the playoffs). Joel’s development as well as Ben’s development are going to benefit greatly from him.

It also gives us all another thing to troll Boston about.

Filling in the Gaps

O’Quinn is a very solid pick-up to solidify the Sixers’ 2nd unit. The Sixers were rumored to have been interested in him last offseason, but he ultimately signed with the Indiana Pacers. He’s a bruising big who can get at it down low and is a good rebounder. He can provide insurance for both Joel and Al Horford as essentially the third-string center.

Another great move by Elton. Ennis was a major contributor for the Sixers off the bench in the playoffs, and being able to retain him at a discount was huge.

Ennis’s ability to knock down open shots along with his defensive versatility were invaluable during the Sixers’ playoff run, and they now keep him in the fold for at least another year. Keeping some financial flexibility in the process helps as well.

Also, to think that the Sixers have now become a destination for ring-chasers is insane.

I’m really excited to see what Shake has to offer in a slightly bigger role this season. He showed flashes of great potential in the minutes he did get in the regular season. He can handle the ball, shoot a little, and is a solid passer. His defense will need some improvement, but he has the length and size to be a good defender. He’s going to compete for backup point guard minutes depending on who else the Sixers bring on.

I’m also so ready to watch him tear up the Summer League.

(also, Kevin wrote about Raul Neto this morning)

What’s the Overall Outlook?

After letting the dust settle from all the madness of the last few days, and you get a chance to look at this team, it could very much be better than last year. They have the potential to be an absolute juggernaut on defense and on the boards. The amount of length and sheer size of the roster is crazy. Consider this:

That’s preposterous. Zhaire Smith and Josh Richardson are tied for the shortest wingspan at 6’10”. They’re just stacked with dynamic, switchable defenders who are going to wreak havoc on lesser teams.

The offensive side of the ball potentially has a lot more questions. For one, they obviously lack a true lock-down shooter with JJ’s departure. Plus, with Jimmy no longer in the fold, they’re down not only a reliable ball-handler, but a guy they can turn to in crunch-time.

Additionally, the guys who look to be the top options off the bench are very young. Matisse Thybulle is a rookie, Zhaire Smith essentially red-shirted last season, and Shake spent a majority of last season in the G-League. I don’t see it being that much of an issue, but it’s something to keep in mind.

I think they’ll ultimately work out all the kinks in their lineup. Everyone they have is a competent-enough shooter to at the very least get them by. Plus, they still have plenty of offensive weapons to be dynamic on that end of the floor. Joel is still a beast, Ben is only getting better, and Tobias looks primed to have a great year. I’d expect them to try and add either another shooter or a legitimate backup point guard via free agency or a trade in the coming weeks to solidify their depth.

Fans should be extremely excited about this squad. They look primed to be one of the Eastern Conference top dogs not only this coming year, but for the foreseeable future.