Sixers forward Guerschon Yabusele
Photo by Emilee Chinn/Getty Images)
Sixers forward Guerschon Yabusele
Guerschon Yabusele was one of the rare bright spots in the Philadelphia 76ers’ disastrous 2024-25 NBA season. The impressive forward was a reliable contributor off the Sixers’ bench and proved to be a shrewd pick-up by Daryl Morey.
Yabusele averaged 11.0 points and 5.6 rebounds along with 2.1 assists in his debut season for the Sixers. Unfortunately, his return to the NBA didn’t go as planned. Philadelphia dealt with a string of injuries to core members of the rotation.
In an interview with Basketball Network, Yabusele admitted that those injuries derailed Philadelphia’s season. However, he did acknowledge that when healthy, the Sixers are a legitimate threat.
“Injuries are part of the game,” Yabusele said. “You’ve got to learn and try to get back to it and get better. I think having Joel back, Paul George, this is going to be big for us. When we had those guys, and we had that run, we felt that we could beat everybody. That was really interesting, to have that part of the season, because at least people know that if they (were) healthy, that would have been a different scenario.”
The Dancing Bear will be an unrestricted free agent this summer. As such, Morey must decide whether to keep him around long-term. Considering the Sixers’ lack of front-court depth, Yabusele may find himself back in a Sixers jersey next season.
Sixers May Need to Make a Tough Decision
According to Ky Carlin of Sixers Wire, Morey could struggle to keep both Guerschon Yabusele and Quentin Grimes this summer.
“Due to their current restraints, bringing back Guerschon Yabusele and Quentin Grimes in free agency will be a challenge for Morey and the front office,” Carlin wrote. “The first apron limits what they can do in free agency and it hurts their chances at being able to keep both players. One has to wonder if Morey makes a salary dump move to create more space to bring back both Yabusele and Grimes.”
Unfortunately for Yabusele, if Morey is forced to choose between him and Grimes, the result is a no-brainer. As such, Yabusele may find himself exploring the free agent market in the coming months.
Morey Wants to Keep Yabusele With Sixers
During a recent news conference, Morey discussed his desire to keep Yabusele with the franchise following a strong debut season.
“We love what Guerschon was able to bring,” Morey said, via Ky Carlin of Sixers Wire. “I think that was a great job by our scouting department. A great job by the coaching staff getting the most out of him. Just like Paul (George), he got pressed into some roles that were a little different from what he thought. We thought he was gonna play more of the 4 and he’s excelled there. He gave us a lot of minutes at the 5 as well.”
Morey continued.
“The team going forward, I think his mix of minutes will be a little different when we’re healthy.” Morey finished. “Obviously, he’s an unrestricted free agent so it’s not for sure whenever that happens, but we would like to retain him.”
Yabusele has earned the opportunity to continue his career with the Sixers. Nevertheless, if circumstances don’t allow for his return, he should feel confident in his ability to land elsewhere in the league. After all, he was one of Nick Nurse’s most reliable players last season.