It’s no secret to any of us Philadelphia 76ers fans. Carl Landry is probably not going to be staying in Philadelphia.
I've consistently heard, whether it's through trade, waive or buyout, it's highly likely Carl Landry is not a Sixer come training camp, too.
— Jake Fischer (@JakeLFischer) July 31, 2015
To me, this is an extremely disappointing move, but it’s one the Sixers are apparently deeming necessary. Although his 7.2 points per game last season wouldn’t be enough to power the Sixers’ offense out of the dumpsters, and his 3.8 rebounds aren’t really anything glamorous, he offers one thing that simply isn’t quantifiable with a statistic.
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Landry — with eight seasons under his belt — has a lot more experience than the majority of the Sixers’ roster. Okay, maybe it is quantifiable, but there’s a lot that comes along with those eight seasons in the NBA. Four of those years Landry’s teams made it into the playoffs, and he’s played nearly 37 playoff games, experience most of the Sixers roster does not have to flaunt.
For this reason, I was excited to see he was a part of the trade with the Sacramento Kings that brought Nik Stauskas to the team. Sure, Landry was more of an afterthought of the trade along with Jason Thompson, but his veteran experience was something I liked.
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I’ve seen veteran experience impact teams positively before. I write on the Washington Wizards over at Hoops Habit, and had the pleasure of following Paul Pierce as he led the team through the playoffs this season. It was fun to watch, and it was clear his many years in the NBA gave him the qualities to lead the younger roster in the locker room, and on the court.
This leads well into my next point regarding Landry, as well as the Wizards.
One of my favorite FanSided writers, Ben Mehic, editor of Wiz Of Awes wrote up a good look on whether or not Landry would work as a Wizard. Afterwards, Ben Tweeted to us to see if we had any thoughts on the matter.
Why, yes, Ben, we do have some thoughts! For starters, there’s obviously no contesting from us on the fact that Landry is getting moved. All signs are pointing to the Sixers moving Landry before camp starts, so we obviously can’t disagree with the premise of the situation.
One thing Mehic noted would really rub some of us who are large supporters of, “The Process” the wrong way when he said in his article, “The Sixers aren’t a team that’s looking to get major value in return.” Sure, the Sixers may not be looking to get big-name All Stars, but the process is all about Sam Hinkie and his (currently) unconventional way of doing things. Draft picks, prospects, and money are important factors of the process that have major value to the Sixers’ long-running plan.
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I will say this, the Wizards are a good candidate for a landing spot for Landry. Especially if they’re offering the Sixers some money, as well as draft picks in the mix.
Mehic went ahead and put a trade through with ESPN’s Trade Machine, sending Martell Webster over to Philly. As Mehic noted, the next season of Webster’s contract is not guaranteed, which gives the Sixers the money, and all the Wizards would have to do to make the deal super sweet (and with a hint of Hinkie) is throw in a draft pick or two. As ESPN’s Trade Machine goes on to say, “THIS TRADE IS SUCCESSFUL.”
To me, it’s a move the Sixers front office would be open to at least hearing out. I’d be fine with seeing something go down between the two parties in the next few days.
So, there you have it, Ben. From a Sixers’ point of view, sure, why not send Landry your way? He’s obviously on his way out, and Washington can give the Sixers exactly what they need. From a Wizards’ point of view, it’s a move that beefs up their roster.
I do believe the Wizards will end up doing more of the leg work as well, since they have a full roster right now. Working Landry into the rotation could be a difficult task with all the players they have right now (which sounds like a glamorous issue to be having).
In addition to that, the Wizards are missing part of that quality I mentioned earlier… Veteran presence. Landry won’t replace Pierce, but he can offer some experience that will do a lot for locker room morale down the stretch and into the postseason.
I’d be open to some business between the Sixers and Wizards, too, Ben.