The Philadelphia 76ers have yet to enter the fray in the trade market this season, but after signing Charles Bassey to a new deal (which also reunites them with their former draft pick), the front office may have just dished out a vivid signal on the kind of deal they are looking for before the February 5 trade deadline.
Of course, the preliminary thought is to toss this signing up as nothing more than a means for the 76ers to fill out the 15-man roster and extend the shelf life of their two-way players in Dominick Barlow and Jabari Walker, who have become important to the rotation. However, beyond visceral pondering, bringing Bassey into the fold can be quite disruptive from a front office perspective.
The 76ers could have signed a non-big man to fill out the roster. But the fact that Philly’s brass made it a point to add another center to the roster, even on an interim basis, actually reinforces the possibility that they could look to streamline their frontcourt on the trade market by shipping one of their regulars away prior to the deadline.
The 76ers could very well trade one of Adem Bona or Andre Drummond after signing Charles Bassey
For now, the 76ers have been deploying Barlow and Adem Bona as their primary backup bigs when healthy while Andre Drummond, who is out of the current rotation, becomes the fill-in starter when Joel Embiid sits out due to rest. The non-Embiid minutes have remained ugly for the most part, and their newest addition is a strong hint that the front office would look into upgrading that backup center spot.
There are some strong candidates available in the market whom the 76ers could look into zooming in on, although some require an overpay to even get into the table for. If Bassey sticks beyond the 10-day period, the 76ers are likely to phase out one of Bona or Drummond. Of course, there aren’t a lot of good reasons to have three bench players who are of the same, exact mold.
Obviously, the odds of Bona and Drummond staying with the 76ers past the trade deadline are higher if Bassey is indeed only an “extender” signing, although that is still not enough for the front office to just stand pat and do nothing to address their woes at the position.
If anything, the Philadelphia 76ers need a rotation upgrade at the backup center role. While Adem Bona and Andre Drummond have been serviceable, Joel Embiid requires a more secure reliever. And it will be incumbent upon the front office to deliver on that end.