Report: Sixers sign Dewayne Dedmon to 1-year contract

The Sixers finally addressed the backup center position, signing Dewayne Dedmon to a contract for the rest of the season.

Dedmon’s season contained many on and off court blow ups as he struggled. The Heat eventually turned to young center Orlando Robinson, before trading Dedmon to San Antonio where he was eventually bought out.

For what most assumed would be a better-than-average buyout market, this is a pretty underwhelming addition. Dedmon will fill up the spot created by waiving Isaiah Joe months ago. In a vacuum, that’s a hard pill for Sixer fans to swallow — especially with Joe leading the NBA in three-point percentage.

Then there’s Paul Reed, who is coming off two games where he provided serviceable minutes. Considering Dedmon probably had other options, we can assume he was guaranteed playing time to some kind of extent.

It might sound like I’m being harsh on Dedmon, but the stats show he wasn’t good in Miami this season. The Heat averaged 13.8 fewer points per 100 possessions while Dedmon was on the floor compared to when he was off. His minus-12.5 net rating was the worst of any Heat rotation member with more than 100 minutes this season.

The argument for playing Dedmon over Reed will likely fall between “he’s experienced” or “Reed fouls too much.” Dedmon is older — he’s 33-years old to be exact. But he also logged one of the highest foul rates in the NBA this season among bigs.

You can point to Miami underachieving this season, but it would take quite a turnaround for Dedmon to become a positive addition. Until then, this move feels like DeAndre Jordan 2.0.