While the Sixers still have some business to attend to before their offseason can be complete, most of their Eastern Conference cohorts have just about wrapped up their work ahead of the 2025-26 season in the fall.
Now is as good of a time as ever to survey the landscape of an Eastern Conference that has lost a pair of championship-caliber teams due to superstar injuries. Very few sure things exist in the conference this year, and there is plenty of opportunity for new contenders to arise.
The Sixers are running back a roster fairly similar to the one that finished out last season in hopes of improved health and continued development from younger players propelling them back into contention. But how have the teams they will have to surpass changed over the summer?
Up next: the New York Knicks, whose loss to the Indiana Pacers in the Eastern Conference Finals prompted a coaching change. But the changes made in New York extend beyond replacing Tom Thibodeau with Mike Brown:
SCOUTING THE SIXERS' COMPETITION
Boston Celtics | Indiana Pacers | Cleveland Cavaliers | New York Knicks
Roster changes
The Knicks had very limited capacity to rework their roster without making a massive trade this summer. They seem to have maximized their ability to built a stronger bench around the same core players they continue to believe in. Part of that came at the Sixers' expense:
Added: Guerschon Yabusele (free agency), Jordan Clarkson (free agency)
Retained: none
Extended: Mikal Bridges (four years, $150 million)
Lost: none
Yabusele will give the Knicks quality minutes at either power forward or center; during his time with the Sixers he was relied on at the five unexpectedly despite naturally being a four. He likely will slide down more often with the Knicks, but any injury to Mitchell Robinson could force him back into a backup center role. Clarkson is an imperfect player, but the Knicks needed someone other than Jalen Brunson to provide steady doses of shot creation and old friend Cam Payne appears on his way out.
MORE: Why Sixers let Yabusele go to New York
Depth chart projection
The Knicks could opt to start a double-big lineup over their triple-wing unit, but the guess here will be that Josh Hart starts over Robinson. Brunson, Bridges, OG Anunoby and Karl-Anthony Towns are all rightfully locked into starting roles, with Hart and Robinson as the most important pieces after that. Then come Deuce McBride, Yabusele and Clarkson:
PG SG SF PF C
Jalen Brunson Mikal Bridges OG Anunoby Josh Hart Karl-Anthony Towns
Jordan Clarkson Deuce McBride Pacôme Dadiet Guerschon Yabusele Mitchell Robinson
Tyler Kolek Ariel Hukporti
This is a very good team, but one more reliable wing would probably do the Knicks a lot of good. They only have 12 players on their roster and are reportedly in the mix on several veterans, including old friend Ben Simmons. They will have to perform some extremely complicated salary cap gymnastics to duck the second apron for the second year in a row; they incurred a hard cap there when they went to lengths the Sixers would not and signed Yabusele using the taxpayer's mid-level exception.
Sixers ties
Brunson, Bridges and Hart all have close ties to the arena the Sixers play in; only Bridges was ever part of the organization – that infamously only lasted a handful of minutes. Sixers fans will always lament the trade that shipped Bridges' draft rights to the Phoenix Suns, particularly because the return – Zhaire Smith and a 2021 first-round pick from the Miami Heat – did not provide the Sixers much value at all.
Now, of course, the first time the Sixers and Knicks face off will be a chance for Yabusele to suit up against his former teammates. Yabusele was admired and respected in the locker room; his popularity among fans was shared within the organization. Yabusele deserves and will receive a strong ovation in his return to Philadelphia.
MORE: Everything to know about Sixers' 2025-26 schedule
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