Why 76ers Didn’t Land a Big Man Before NBA Trade Deadline

Months before the 2024 NBA trade deadline, Philadelphia 76ers' President of Basketball Operations revealed that the Sixers were planning to prioritize acquiring a backup big man to help in the depth department behind Joel Embiid.

“I try not to get too prescriptive or proscriptive on that, but I would say there are a few areas if we do take an injury obviously if they're big injuries, you're a little bit challenged in the playoffs no matter what, but to get us through stretches where key guys are out, I do think some depth at the big might be helpful. I do think some depth at guard,” Morey said after landing an extension with the 76ers in December.

Morey’s comments came well before the Sixers were faced with their toughest challenge of the season. As the Sixers faced the Golden State Warriors on January 30, Embiid returned to the court after a two-game absence due to knee swelling. Unfortunately, his night ended prematurely against the Warriors, as he suffered a meniscus injury.

Nearly a week after going out early against Golden State, Embiid underwent surgery to correct his injury. While the Sixers hope to get their big man back in action before the 2024 NBA Playoffs, they know they’ll rock without him for the time being.

With this recent development, many expected the Sixers to prioritize ending a big man in the trade market even more. While they were linked to Chicago Bulls big man Andre Drummond, the trade deadline came and went, with the Sixers making four deals without any of them being for a center.

Morey admitted after the deadline that nothing changed regarding the team’s plans to target a center in the trade market. Unfortunately, that wasn’t an area they could take care of this time around.

“There really were no bigs traded,” Morey explained. “I was shocked by that. We were aggressive to do that, but they just weren’t available, so it didn’t happen.”

The post-deadline roster isn’t final. While all team-to-team transactions are capped until the offseason, the buyout market will offer the 76ers an opportunity to potentially add multiple prospects in the coming weeks. A center could be in play, but Morey added caution to the idea that they’ll get a guy who will come in and snatch big minutes from Paul Reed and Mo Bamba.

“There are obviously a lot of players available in the buyout market. I think that position has been lighter than others,” Morey added. “… We love what Paul and Mo bring, but I mean, obviously, after just maybe one or two teams recently, we’ve been the most injured or sick team in the league. We also would like to bring in another player. I could see us bringing in a player [on the buyout market], but I don’t see it as someone that you would expect to play a huge role necessarily.”

The Sixers didn’t expect the combination of Reed and Bamba to replace Joel Embiid’s league-leading production, but it’s apparent the Sixers are still trying to figure out how to get the most out of the two reserves, who have garnered bigger roles.

“We’re going to have to continue to be creative,” Morey finished. “I think we have the best coach in the league in being creative. Obviously, we’ve taken our lumps lately. I know Nick [Nurse]. If we got a shot to win, he’s gonna have the game plan to give us a shot to win. Our players are fighting hard, and they’ll continue to do that.”