Trading Jerami Grant Was A Mistake For The Philadelphia 76ers
Fans were shocked when Jerami Grant was traded at the beginning of last season. It was a short term fix but a bad long term move for the Philadelphia 76ers.
Jerami Grant was traded from the Philadelphia 76ers to the Oklahoma City Thunder just days after the beginning of the 2016-2017 season. At the time it seemed like a great move, as it brought in veteran stretch four in Ersan Ilyasova to help mentor Dario Saric and provide depth at the power forward. The trade also brought a protected future first round pick. However, now the Sixers need depth at both the small and power forward positions. The trade actually hurt the Sixers for this summer.
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Jerami Was Taken For Granted
Grant was perceived as a defensive ace that was very limited on offense. However, the Philadelphia 76ers may have just not appreciated what Grant did bring to the table.
| Season | Age | Tm | G | MP | FG% | 3P% | 2P% | eFG% | FT% | ORB | DRB | TRB | AST | STL | BLK | TOV | PF | PTS |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2014-15 | 20 | PHI | 65 | 21.2 | .352 | .314 | .383 | .422 | .591 | 0.8 | 2.3 | 3.0 | 1.2 | 0.6 | 1.0 | 1.3 | 2.2 | 6.3 |
| 2015-16 | 21 | PHI | 77 | 26.8 | .419 | .240 | .477 | .448 | .658 | 1.3 | 3.4 | 4.7 | 1.8 | 0.7 | 1.6 | 1.4 | 2.8 | 9.7 |
| 2016-17 | 22 | TOT | 80 | 19.1 | .463 | .371 | .514 | .529 | .612 | 0.5 | 2.1 | 2.6 | 0.6 | 0.4 | 1.0 | 0.6 | 1.9 | 5.5 |
| 2016-17 | 22 | PHI | 2 | 20.5 | .353 | .000 | .400 | .353 | .500 | 0.0 | 3.5 | 3.5 | 0.0 | 0.0 | 2.0 | 1.5 | 2.5 | 8.0 |
| 2016-17 | 22 | OKC | 78 | 19.1 | .469 | .377 | .523 | .539 | .619 | 0.5 | 2.1 | 2.6 | 0.6 | 0.4 | 1.0 | 0.5 | 1.8 | 5.4 |
| Career | 222 | 22.4 | .412 | .304 | .465 | .462 | .628 | 0.8 | 2.6 | 3.4 | 1.2 | 0.6 | 1.2 | 1.1 | 2.3 | 7.2 | ||
| 3 seasons | PHI | 144 | 24.2 | .394 | .276 | .447 | .437 | .631 | 1.0 | 2.9 | 3.9 | 1.5 | 0.7 | 1.4 | 1.4 | 2.5 | 8.2 | |
| 1 season | OKC | 78 | 19.1 | .469 | .377 | .523 | .539 | .619 | 0.5 | 2.1 | 2.6 | 0.6 | 0.4 | 1.0 | 0.5 | 1.8 | 5.4 |
Provided by Basketball-Reference.com: View Original Table
Generated 5/29/2017.
It is clear that Grant can be a very efficient offensive player if placed into the right situation. He could have been a great second string player for the Sixers next season if he was retained. Of course, he could have been asked to do less in creating offense with the Thunder and that is why he was more efficient. Which is fine, next season he would have been asked to do less as well. Also it is clear to see that he become a very good 3-and-D player based on his 3-point percentage with the Thunder this past season.
He Could Return
The good news is that Grant is scheduled to be a restricted free agent, albeit the Thunder could — and likely will — retain his services via a team option. Should they decide to forgo the final year of his contract, though, he could return to the Philadelphia 76ers this offseason, but they will have to overpay for his services. This is because he would be a restricted free agent and the Thunder could match a fair market offer for him. Not to say the Sixers could not do so, as they have so much more cap space than the Thunder do.
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If the Sixers did not trade him in the first place, then that would not be an issue. The Sixers could have offered him a fair price for his services to retain him before another team could give him an offer. Ilyasova would have still been a free agent this summer the Sixers would have not have to give anything up for him. Yes, draft picks are important, there is no doubt about that. It was a good deal on paper to turn a former second round pick into a future first rounder and a veteran. However, most people knew the Sixers were not ready for the playoffs yet so the move was overall unnecessary.
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As a result of this trade, the Philadelphia 76ers may have to address both forward positions versus a if Grant was kept away from the trading block. He proven that given less pressure to score he can be quite effective. He still return to the Sixers, but the cost of his return may be too high.