(Photo by Mark Blinch/Getty Images)
The NBA trade deadline has come and gone, and now we’ve entered buyout season. Naturally, the Sixers — with an open roster spot and newfound financial flexibility — are expected to peruse the available options for one last roster upgrade before the playoffs.
One potential area of need: backup center. Many expected Philly to trade for another big, but it did not come to pass. The Sixers could also look to bolster the wing rotation even further, with several quality wings expected to become available.
Here are three names in particular that should keep the Sixers enwrapped.
Potential 76ers buyout candidate: Danny Green
Remember this guy? The Grizzlies traded Danny Green to the Rockets, setting up the 35-year-old for a new job search. Houston has no interest in contending. Meanwhile, Green is getting up there in years and he just recently returned from a torn ACL. His personal championship window is closing fast.
Why should the Sixers have interest? Well, Green started in the playoffs last season and was maybe one of five or six players that Doc Rivers could actually rely on when the lights were brightest. He’s not the same player who won championships with Toronto and Los Angeles, but Green can still bomb 3s and play rock-solid team defense.
Green would have a legitimate case for minutes with the second unit, and there’s something to be said for cohesion and familiarity. Green knows Rivers’ system, he knows how to play off of Embiid and Harden, and there’s really no denying the track record. We’re talking about one of the best role players of his generation.
The Sixers should absolutely make a run at Green if there’s no clear and obvious upgrade at center available to them (no, I don’t think Nerlens Noel is a clear and obvious upgrade). Two-way wings carry more importance than one-way bigs in the postseason, and just last year Green was stepping up in the playoffs.
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