Philadelphia 76ers Could Rely on Robert Covington

The Philadelphia 76ers could rely on Robert Covington for support on the wings over the next few years.

There is very little certainty regarding the Philadelphia 76ers roster. Over the next season or two, the team will likely see many of its lower-tier NBA players disappear and move on to other teams or other basketball opportunities, and newer, hopefully better basketball players will come in to take their places.

In the frontcourt, the future is solid. The Sixers will have Joel Embiid, Dario Saric, and a mix of Jahlil Okafor or Nerlens Noel (assuming the team realizes the two can not co-exist and moves one of them). Additionally, they could grab Ben Simmons in this year’s draft.

In the backcourt, things are not at all certain. Ish Smith is not to be trusted with the reigns of the future, and Nik Stauskas and Isaiah Canaan are on the fence with being around for the long haul.

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Even more uncertain than these is the wings. Who will be suiting up as a Sixer here? Only time will tell us, but some people may be overlooking the possibility that Robert Covington could be a consistent face for the next few seasons.

Covington is contracted with the team through the 2018 season (with a team option in the final year) on a low salary of just $1 million. Although Covington can be seen as a very inconsistent and streaky player, for his low price tag, he could make up a solid part of a contending team.

Covington, this season, averages 11.9 points, 1.6 steals, 1.4 assists, and 5.9 rebounds per game. He shoots 39 percent from the field and 34 from beyond the arc, but has had several streaks of higher percentage shooting.

It seems like in games that the Sixers are competitive in, Covington is often a consistent player to put the ball with. He can usually swing out on the side and hit a 3-pointer with ease, especially when his confidence is high.

Covington’s shooting isn’t exactly at a sharpshooter level this season, but he does have a high success rate from the left side of the floor, and his corner shots are improving. He can provide some decent spacing if he continues to work on his 3-point shot, which is and is still becoming his best attribute.

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I think the only issue with letting Covington on the team is that it’s going to be hard figuring out where he fits moving forward. With hopefully better all-around talent coming to Philly, he will get moved down in the minutes-chain, but how much? Should he be left in the lineup as a starter like he is now? Or will he function better as an off-the-bench spark plug? I’m curious and excited to see how he will form into the future.

Cov sustained a serious neck injury in a recent game that had him leave on a stretcher, but speaking to the fans and the media, he said he’s doing much better.

"Robert Covington spoke to the media last night and said overall he’s feeling good » https://t.co/ug4UCcNawNhttps://t.co/HO6wq9vVXL— Philadelphia 76ers (@Sixers) March 13, 2016"

The Sixers have 15 roster spots to work with. The way I see it, 6 of them are taken up for next season (Noel, Okafor, Embiid, Saric, and 2 lottery picks from 2016) leaving 9 for the Sixers to play around with. Out of the players on the team right now, there’s no way that Covington falls in the bottom 4, and I don’t think the Sixers will make moves bringing in 5 players (through trades or free agency this offseason) that would go above Covington in the pecking order.

So I think it’s safe to say he will be a Sixer next season, and that he will be fighting for a spot on the team the year after that as it begins to become a more formidable team.

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Expect to see Covington on this team, and expect to see him become a solid reliable component in whatever duty he is assigned.