Sixers' Doc Rivers Won't 'Lose Sleep' Over Buyout Market
A couple of weeks ago, the NBA closed the doors on the trade market for the remainder of the season. Although the Sixers were linked to a handful of possible trades, they came out with just one deal in place, landing the veteran point guard George Hill and the young forward, Ignas Brazdeikis.
Considering they only added one critical piece to the roster before the eventual playoff run, many expected the 76ers to get busy in the buyout market. So far, there's been nothing but crickets on the Sixers' end.
On Friday, the buyout market closes its doors for the rest of the season, and the Sixers teased a possible move on Thursday. As the team participated in practice ahead of Friday's matchup against the New Orleans Pelicans, the Sixers announced that they had waived Ignas Brazdeikis.
Although they didn't have a follow-up plan in place, getting rid of Brazdeikis opens up the opportunity for Daryl Morey to ink another player from the market. Sixers head coach Doc Rivers surely embraces the idea of bolstering the roster in any way like all coaches would -- but he also made it clear he's not begging for moves to get done.
“It doesn’t matter one way or the other with me,” Rivers said on Thursday when asked about possibly adding a new piece to the roster before the deadline. “I’m happy now, and if we add someone, I’ll be happy, but I’m not gonna lose sleep over it either way. Let me put it that way. So we’ll see.”
Well, that's quite a familiar message from Rivers. As the trade deadline inched closer last month, Rivers made it very clear that he's satisfied with this year's team. And why shouldn't he be? After all, the Sixers have been around the first seed in the Eastern Conference since early on in the year.
If the Sixers' front office does decide to add to the team, they'll likely go big. Before, a stretch-four would've been ideal for the Sixers this year as Tobias Harris' backup Mike Scott has been up and down with his scoring and health.
However, the Sixers could also mix in another big for the nights when Joel Embiid misses time. Before, Tony Bradley gave Philly some quality minutes when the four-time All-Star was out, but he moved the needle for the George Hill trade. Right now, the Sixers have just Dwight Howard behind him.
Regardless of what the Sixers choose to do, Rivers isn't going to be frustrated either way. Adding another body to the roster won't affect the regular rotations much, and not adding anybody else won't affect it at all.
Justin Grasso covers the Philadelphia 76ers for Sports Illustrated. You can follow him for live updates on Twitter: @JGrasso_ & Instagram: @JGrassoNBA.
