Could Dario Saric Lead The Sixers' Second Unit?

With the Philadelphia 76ers team roster improving across the board, the bench will improve as well. Can Dario Saric be the leader for the second unit?

Brand new Sixer Dario Saric firmly stuck to his word and is finally a part of the team that drafted him back in 2014. The loyalty he showed to Sixers head coach Brett Brown by tossing aside financial implications was one that deserves the ultimate tip of the hat from the 205. The city of Philadelphia will to love Saric’s competitiveness and grit from the get go. Surely he will be a fan favorite in no time.

What’s left to do now is to simply watch Saric define his role on this Sixers team as the season goes along. Saric shares the same positional title as number one overall pick Ben Simmons (point forward) and there are some questions as to how the two will play alongside each other in their rookie season.

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If the duo does not mesh early on in the season, an alternative option could be to run Dario Saric and Ben Simmons in separate lineups, sort of like they did last year with Nerlens Noel and Jahlil Okafor. By no means can we say Saric and Simmons are on that level of incompatibility yet considering they haven’t played any basketball together, but some would say the fit looks suspect.

Ben Simmons will be handed the reigns as one of the primary ball handlers in the starting offense from day one, so perhaps it would be best if Philly let Saric run the team’s second unit as Simmons’ backup.

Dario’s skill set as a distributor, and scorer will translate well in the NBA especially if he is given full autonomy to play to his strengths in the backup squad. Saric would unquestionably be a go-to scoring punch off the bench and could end up being the Sixers own version of Manu Ginobili.

Despite being about four to five inches apart in height, Saric and Ginobili share many of the same attributes offensively. They’re both crafty around the basket, good shooters, and can be a primary/secondary ball handler for their team. Neither man is all that bouncy, and they can both be a bit turnover prone. To top it all off, they’re both international players who had multiple years of professional basketball experience before coming to the NBA.

Part of the reason the Sixers were prepared to pay Ginobili 30 million dollars was likely because they know he could’ve been the perfect ambassador for Saric and the rest of the young guys on the roster. Head Coach Brett Brown was in San Antonio all of those years with the Spurs when they had Manu tearing apart teams with guys like Brent Barry and Robert Horry beside him. The skill level of the 2007 champion, San Antonio Spurs’ second lineup was individually not all that impressive, but it was the chemistry that Ginobili and company had that made them so deadly.

The Sixers should attempt to cultivate that kind of cohesion between guys like Saric, Richaun Holmes, and Hollis Thompson. Their starting five (whatever it ends up being) will not be capable of winning more than fifteen games this season if they don’t get good production from their backups.

One pairing I am very much looking forward to watching is Saric alongside Sergio Rodriguez. The two Euro ballers are familiar with the style of play from overseas, and should make a solid duo particularly in drive-and-dish, and pick-and-pop situations. The pace at which those two control the offense could be quite the switch-up on opposing teams that are just figuring out how to stop the Simmons fast break.

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It is important to remember that there are several players on this team that haven’t played one second of basketball together, and you can’t hold on too tight to preconceived notions. Saric will get his chance to prove he’s a day one starter like everyone else. The situation is fluid, but don’t be surprised if Saric carves out his role in the NBA as a lethal sixth man. He has all of the tools to become that and more. He’s already shown us he’s ready for the passionate fans in Philadelphia, now it’s time for him to show that he’s ready for the NBA.

Could Dario Saric Lead The Sixers’ Second Unit?

By Dalton Lanoza | Jul 26, 2016

With the Philadelphia 76ers team roster improving across the board, the bench will improve as well. Can Dario Saric be the leader for the second unit?