With free agency rumors heating up, Dion Waiters has been someone commonly tied to the Sixers. However, considering the direction in which Philadelphia is moving, he represents almost the antithesis of what the Sixers need on the perimeter.
With the Philadelphia 76ers looking to ramp up their rebuild this year under Bryan Colangelo, their name has been thrown around quite a bit when looking at the secondary and tertiary tiers of free agent talents. Alongside guys like Harrison Barnes and Allen Crabbe, one of the most consistently mentioned names has been Dion Waiters, the volume scorer from Oklahoma City.
After struggling to produce alongside LeBron James in lieu of his return the Cleveland, Waiters was traded to Oklahoma City, where he ended up being an inconsistent, but at times highly valuable asset on the wing. With the cap space rising and the Sixers likely bound to overpay for the majority of players coming their way, Waiters could be set to get a fairly hefty offer from Colangelo and company, but that is something Philly should truly be looking to avoid this off-season.
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The Sixers’ main goal this off-season should be finding guys to fit the culture Brett Brown has been attempting to establish for years. Players with high character and who have proven themselves to be willing to sacrifice for the betterment of the team in any given scenario. That alone is where Waiters doesn’t fit, and the main reason why he should be someone that Philly seeks to move past, especially given how lucrative an offer sheet may have to be for him to sign.
Waiters never really got along with Kyrie Irving when he began his career with the Cavaliers, and his team-wide relationships only got worse when LeBron James returned- a rarity given how much success James has had in maximizing the output of his supporting cast. He consistently complained about a lack of minutes, which is something a young Sixers team doesn’t need in the locker room, and the fact that he still showed signs of discontent in a better rotational spot with OKC gives all the more reason to worry. He has a proven history of dissatisfaction, and putting him on a team that likely won’t win too many games isn’t going to solve those issues.
Along with the fact that Colangelo should be looking for pieces who could help provide a positive voice in the locker room, such as a Kent Bazemore or a veteran mentor, Waiters’ basketball fit isn’t all that appealing either considering the circumstances. He’s certainly capable off playing off of Ben Simmons as a spot up shooter from deep, but tends to try to do a bit too much on the offensive end at times and can force himself into tough situations with the basketball. He takes bad shots far more than your typical third or fourth option scorer, and tends to get tunnel vision when he begins looking for his own offense. The Sixers are a team who is going to win through ball movement, especially running through the post, and a well balanced offensive attack. Waiters doesn’t aid remotely in either of those categories, and throws an additional ball stopper into the lineup that will solely bog down the rotation.
Defensively, Waiters is an undesirable asset as well. He has the physical tools indicative of someone who can defend at a high level when motivated, but he tends to get distracted at times and can seem indifferent during points in the game where indifference can really harm the team. He lacks the drive and overall aggressiveness that highlights Philly’s current core and doesn’t fit the proverbial bill nearly as well as some of the other options the 76ers may be considering at the moment.
The overarching theme here is that Philadelphia should be looking to add solid team players to their rotation this year, not overshooting for high octane scorers who can tend to hinder the success of teammates around them. The definition of ‘team player’ can get a tad fuzzy at times and the semantics of the phrase don’t always match up, but a unit based around character and a devoted will to win is almost always better than raw firepower with an inconsistent motor. Dion Waiters brings talent, but he doesn’t bring the type of player that can be molded into a long term staple in Brett Brown’s rotation and isn’t someone worth shelling out a large contract to, especially not from the viewpoint of a young, rebuilding roster.
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Waiters needs to be in an environment that can help restrain his ego on the court, and the Sixers are in no position to do that just yet.