Forget Center, Philadelphia 76ers Logjam Is Roster Wide Now

December 30, 2015; Sacramento, CA, USA; Philadelphia 76ers head coach Brett Brown during the third quarter against the Sacramento Kings at Sleep Train Arena. The 76ers defeated the Kings 110-105. Mandatory Credit: Kyle Terada-USA TODAY Sports
December 30, 2015; Sacramento, CA, USA; Philadelphia 76ers head coach Brett Brown during the third quarter against the Sacramento Kings at Sleep Train Arena. The 76ers defeated the Kings 110-105. Mandatory Credit: Kyle Terada-USA TODAY Sports /
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Apr 2, 2016; Philadelphia, PA, USA; Philadelphia 76ers head coach Brett Brown reacts during the second half against the Indiana Pacers at Wells Fargo Center. The Pacers won 115-102. Mandatory Credit: Bill Streicher-USA TODAY Sports
Apr 2, 2016; Philadelphia, PA, USA; Philadelphia 76ers head coach Brett Brown reacts during the second half against the Indiana Pacers at Wells Fargo Center. The Pacers won 115-102. Mandatory Credit: Bill Streicher-USA TODAY Sports /

Roster battles

To be honest, right now the least competitive position appears to be: center.  While there is a culture of “positionless basketball” on the Philadelphia 76ers, the positional grouping are simply there to make it easier to follow the roster battles.  At the end of the day, the team will likely carry three players per “natural position”.  As you can see, that will likely translate into some talented prospects not making the roster.

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We had looked at the players most likely to make this roster in a previous article, and even in that article, we knew that the decisions of who does and does not make this roster will hurt more than recent years.  As we layer on the undrafted free agent signings, we can see that the team truly is bursting at the seems now.  Some undrafted players, such as Cat Barber, was a projected late first round prospect.

Now before anyone misunderstands me – the Philadelphia 76ers center position has the makings of three elite centers in the NBA, who will all be competing for minutes. Part of that will be addressed by a minutes restriction and alternating games schedule for Joel Embiid. But even on his off nights, the team will be working two very good centers into an NBA game.

At other positions? These have players who are known, and unknown, to the head coach.  In the upcoming weeks, the team will be gather knowledge about their new and unknown players.

Next: Domino Effect