FanPost

NBA Free Agency: Sixers Should Jump at Chance to Sign DeRozan


When the clock strikes midnight and the calendar turns to July, NBA free agency begins.


The Philadelphia 76ers face an interesting conundrum. They have a ton of money to spend, but few quality options to spend it on.

Several NBA writers have reported different rumors about the Sixers free agency during the past week. Harrison Barnes, Dion Waiters, Allen Crabbe, and even DeMar DeRozan have been linked to Philadelphia.

DeRozan is the most intriguing of these options. Chris Haynes reported today that DeRozan could meet with Sixers brass after he talks with his incumbent team, the Toronto Raptors. The All-Star shooting guard is by far the best player that the Sixers are rumored to be targeting.

There are questions about DeRozan's fit with the rest of the Sixers roster. Kyle Neubeck of SB Nation's Liberty Ballers blog called DeRozan a "worst-case scenario" for the Sixers because of his lack of three-point range and ball-dominant style.

While these questions are valid, DeRozan is too talented to pass up, especially in this subpar free agent market. He averaged 23.5 points per game for Toronto last season, more than any Sixer since Allen Iverson.

According to rumors, Harrison Barnes could get a max offer sheet from Bryan Colangelo. DeRozan, however, would be much more deserving of a max contract, and more likely to produce at an All-Star level over the course of his Sixers tenure.

If the Sixers were able to add DeRozan, Philadelphia would instantly become a more attractive destination for other top free agents. Right now, Colangelo will likely be forced to overpay middling players.

There are no guarantees that presumptive franchise cornerstones Ben Simmons and Joel Embiid will ever become as good as DeRozan. His isolation scoring ability is valuable at the end of games, and it is a skill that Simmons did not show at LSU.

If the Sixers are presented with the chance to sign DeRozan, they should bet on the talent, and figure out the fit later. By adding prolific three-point shooters at point guard and small forward to pair with sweet-shooting (probably) center Joel Embiid, the Sixers could make the spacing work.

In all likelihood, the Sixers will not even have a choice. DeRozan will likely re-sign with the Raptors.

While DeRozan may not be a perfect fit, a meeting with him is far from the worst Sixers rumor I have heard during the past few weeks.


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