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The Sixers agreed on a two-year deal with Trendon Watford on Wednesday evening, a league source confirmed to PHLY, marking Philadelphia’s first official move of the 2025 offseason. Watford’s deal is for two years and approximately $5.3 million, according to numerous reports.
Let’s start with the physical tools — Watford has power forward (or at least 3/4 hybrid) height and length to give Philadelphia positional size in the frontcourt. Watford measured in a 6’7.5″ barefoot during his trip to the combine in 2021, with a 7’2.25″ wingspan to match. He is not a super explosive athlete, which was at the forefront of questions about him in the pre-draft process. Watford spent a decent amount of his two years at LSU attacking bigger, slower players, which didn’t tell us a lot about his ability to separate against (or guard) NBA wings and forwards.
Things were tough for Watford early, but he seems to have figured some things out over the last year or two, or at least adjusted his tempo and timing to NBA speed.
The base of Watford’s game starts with his driving ability, where he is a genuine threat to score and playmake for others and has been dating back to college. Despite being a below-the-rim athlete, Watford has pretty consistently been a good rim finisher, thanks to a combination of good touch, good length, and a classic old-man game that keeps opponents off-balance when he attacks. Watford has been at 66% or higher at the rim all four seasons in the league, with those shots representing a huge chunk of his shot diet. He also has a more polished floater game than you’d expect, which gives him an out in late-clock situations.
Though he may not tap into this a ton in Philadelphia, Brooklyn used him quite a bit as a primary ballhandler last season, leading to the first double-digit scoring season of his career. More importantly, it gave Watford increased opportunities to show off his playmaking abilities. Watford is a creative and willing passer who almost always keeps his head up, and his size allows him to have theoretical value as both the ball handler and the screener in ball screen actions.
That could be a key piece of Watford’s role, and also a need in the increasingly likely event that Guerschon Yabusele moves on this summer. Philadelphia had a dearth of “high feel” players on the roster last season, and the Sixers lack a singular playmaker at the point of attack who can take the passing burden off of others. Finding passers at spots all over the floor is something they missed when constructing last year’s roster. Watford helps chip away at that problem. He can run a set at the point-of-attack, sprinkle in playmaking in short-roll situations, and attack a scrambling defense off of the bounce, seeking the look for others while still hunting for shots at the rim.
(Speaking of Yabusele, by the way, the word right now is that signs point to Yabusele heading elsewhere. I wouldn’t take it to the bank just yet, but I’ve been pessimistic about Yabusele returning for the last month or more, so take that for what it’s worth.)
The size and playmaking make him an intriguing transition player in a Sixers context. He has historically been a better defensive rebounder than an offensive rebounder, and if he can finish off a possession on the glass, Watford is both a grab-and-go threat by himself and a smart hit-ahead passer. That should be a boon for their young and athletic guards — if you can get Tyrese Maxey leaking up the court early as he did when James Harden ran point, and if you can get VJ Edgecombe outrunning defenders on stops, Watford can be part of a healthy transition attack.
One of the things that will have to change for Watford in Philadelphia is his willingness to let it go from beyond. It’s still hard to tell if he is or isn’t a good shooter four years into his NBA career, because he simply doesn’t take enough of those shots. Across 217 games through four seasons in Portland and Brooklyn, Watford has only attempted 258 threes, despite having two different seasons at 39 percent or better. While Watford was a little less gunshy for the Nets last season at an even two attempts per game, he needs to find some additional willingness to be a high-leverage player on a competitive team. And part of the problem is his release — Watford’s mechanics are a bit slow, so while his length gives him decent enough margin for error to get a shot off, he gives some of that back with the elongated release.
By and large, I still think he has enough in the bag to be a positive contributor on the offensive end. He has gotten stronger and developed the handle enough to be a viable NBA player, even if he has some stylistic quirks. And maybe the Sixers can find some interesting ways to weaponize Watford with their army of guards. Rather than acquiring a floor general point guard to move their shoot-first guards into off-ball roles, the Sixers are adding some playmaking through roster depth, including with their selection of Johnni Broome at No. 35.
So what about everything else? Watford was a dreadful college defender who has been closer to neutral in the NBA than many expected him to be. He has cleaned up some bad technique that highlighted his athletic limitations. For example, Watford has gotten better at getting down in a stance out on the perimeter, which has given him more switchability than he appeared to have at LSU. Is he a true switch defender? Probably not, but he has a little bit of positional flexibility and can bother smaller players with his length if he can stay close enough to contest.
In theory, Watford has been a decent rebounder for most of his career, though his rate stats took a hit last year as he played more and shouldered much more responsibility on offense. The hope would be that a reduced role in Philadelphia gives him a chance to exert more energy on the glass, where he should at least be a decent defensive rebounder, if nothing else.
Plus, he’s a close friend of Tyrese Maxey’s, so if you believe in the power of friendship, this is the signing for you.
Aye gang I called you.. https://t.co/3JhdaUy5FG
— Trendon Watford (@trendonw) February 22, 2024
The interesting thing about this signing is that, if you’re asking me, it doesn’t feel like a direct answer to their needs the same way a stretch four or a rebounding machine at the four would. Watford’s strengths are more about what he can do with the ball in his hands as a unique threat for a player of his size, and less about any kind of off-ball utility or dirty work traits.
But as a talent bet on a contract this small, I think it’s a pretty interesting move with some upside. Watford only turns 25 in November, so Philadelphia’s push to get younger and more dynamic continues, while Watford gets a fairly clear path to rotation minutes on a good team. A smart partnership on both sides, and the first domino for the Sixers in free agency.
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