10-Day Contracts Can Help the Sixers Solve a Big Problem

It's Jan. 5, which means two things in the NBA this year: We're exactly one month away from the trade deadline, and teams can now begin signing players to 10-day contracts.

Unlike two-way deals, which can only go to players with fewer than four years of NBA experience, anyone can sign a 10-day contract. The New York Knicks even signed the fossilized remains of P.J. Tucker to a pair of 10-day deals last year before handing him a rest-of-season contract.

The Sixers have one open roster spot, so they could sign someone to a 10-day deal as early as Monday. The contract will span either 10 days or three games (whichever is longer) and should cost roughly $132,000. Once a 10-day contract runs out, the Sixers could sign that player to one more 10-day contract before having to decide whether to sign them for the rest of the season.

Signing someone to a 10-day contract could help the Sixers bolster their short-term depth while maintaining their optionality ahead of the trade deadline. They're presumably preserving their one open roster spot to eventually convert Dominick Barlow from a two-way deal to a standard contract, but they might be hoping to keep it open through they trade deadline in case they need it for something else first.

In the meantime, 10-day contracts could help the Sixers solve one of their biggest problems with Barlow for now.

Why the Sixers should be active on the 10-day market

As we noted in mid-December, the Sixers can have only 90 total active games from their two-way players because they have only 14 players on standard contracts. On Saturday, Keith Smith of Spotrac noted that the Sixers had only 12 games left where they could have both Barlow and Jabari Walker active. They proceeded to burn one of those games in Saturday night's win over the New York Knicks.

The Philadelphia 76ers have 12 games left where both Dominick Barlow and Jabari Walker can be active for the same game due to the under-15 rule 90-game two-way limit.

Keep an eye on 10 Day deals for the Sixers as a temporary way to work around the under-15 90-game limit.
— Keith Smith (@KeithSmithNBA) January 2, 2026

The Sixers have 17 games remaining between now and the trade deadline, and they'll presumably want both Barlow and Walker active (if healthy) for all of those games. They should also want to get a look at MarJon Beauchamp outside of the G League.

That's where 10-day contracts could come in handy. If they sign someone to a 10-day deal, the games in which that player is on the active roster won't count toward the Sixers' Under-Fifteen Game total.

The Sixers have six games between Jan. 5-14, so signing someone to a 10-day contract prior to Monday's game against the Denver Nuggets would help them bridge the gap to the trade deadline. If they signed someone to another 10-day deal on Jan. 19, that would also span six games, which would give them even more wiggle room below the Under-Fifteen Game limit before they'd have to convert Barlow or Walker.

If (when?) the Sixers do sign someone to a 10-day deal, any game that they're under contact won't count as an Under-Fifteen Game. The Sixers could thus also call Beauchamp up from the G League and put him on their active list without pushing closer to that 90-game limit. In fact, that might be the only reason why they haven't already done so.

So… who should they sign?

Unlike last year, when injuries decimated their roster, the Sixers are relatively healthy at this stage of the season. Kelly Oubre Jr. (knee) and Trendon Watford (adductor) have been out since November, although both appear to be nearing their return. Otherwise, this is the healthiest they've been all year. Even Joel Embiid is routinely being listed as probable!

With that said, the Sixers don't have any glaring holes to address with a 10-day deal. It might be tough for anyone whom they sign to crack their rotation, as they even made Andre Drummond a healthy scratch in Saturday's win over the Knicks. Like every other team, they could use another three-and-D wing, but they might prefer to see what they have in Beauchamp before testing out a 10-day signee.

However, that shouldn't preclude the Sixers from signing someone just for the Under-Fifteen Game benefits. Getting a player into their building even for a limited time could pay dividends down the line, too.

Smith recently highlighted some potential 10-day candidates, although he noted that Beauchamp would have led the list had he not just signed a two-way deal with the Sixers. That group includes some former first-round picks (Killian Hayes, Kobe Bufkin, Kevin Knox II, James Bouknight), a few old friends (Mac McClung, Charles Bassey) and a real blast from the past (Skal Labissiere).

The Sixers have undoubtedly done their homework on potential 10-day candidates already. Don't be surprised if they sign someone in the next few days to begin extending the clock on their Under-Fifteen Games.

Unless otherwise noted, all stats via NBA.com, PBPStats, Cleaning the Glass or Basketball Reference. All salary information via Spotrac and salary-cap information via RealGM.

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