Philadelphia 76ers targeting 10-day contracts

The Philadelphia 76ers resist filling the 15th roster spot. That may soon change, as January 5, 2018 opens the NBA 10-day contract period.

The Philadelphia 76ers may have some strategy for the team after all. As the team tries the rope-a-dope to absorb injuries to key players in the midst of building a success team and line-ups, there is a growing concern that the team is willing to sit on their hands and wait.

And observe.

But that forces the team to pile minutes on players who are already pulling the lion’s share of minutes.  And on a team with fatigued players and post-season aspirations, that feels very counterproductive. But perhaps there is more to this story. Perhaps 2018 will bring resolution of sorts.

Those 10-day contracts arrive this week

You see, the 2018 10-day contract season begins on January 5, 2018. At that time, NBA teams can sign players for an “audition” of sorts. The contract is for 10-days only, and each team can sign an individual player to two such time-limited contracts.  To catch up on the whole tale, a great source is NBA Salary Cap FAQ.

I’ve brought up the vacant 15th roster spot for good reason. These Philadelphia 76ers are in playoff mode, so there is no true advantage for playing a shallow and injured roster to position the team for a better draft position in 2018.  In fact, while the Sixers are in a “win-now” mode for the first time in a very long span, the impact of any 2018 NBA Draft rookies may not have an immediate positive impact on the team at all.  When you factor in three draft-and-stash prospects from the 2017 NBA Draft already, there is a significant amount of logic to believe that this team will be hard pressed to find both roster and playing room for any newcomers.

The here-and-now

But there is opportunity today.  And today means that the team may entertain some 10-day contract to audition players for a post season run with the team.  With the nagging injuries to some of the starters, plus lengthy injuries to other players, there is certainly plenty of opportunity to bring in either a front-court or back-court player to help out for the immediate needs of the team.

A new tool for the now

All the while, the team is trying to analyze and assess exactly what is currently on the roster, both in terms of today and in projecting out several years to come.   While you can accomplish all of these goals with careful scouting, basketball analytics, and dialogue, those are imperfect methods.

The ultimate method of assessing talent is to involve a prospect with the players on the roster.  Can he keep pace with the current lineup? Does he compliment the skillsets of the players around him? Does he have chemistry, or does the arrangement feel too forced? A 10-day contract becomes a new and invaluable tool for experts trying to gauge the future production on this nebulous roster. So what makes this team so nebulous?  Injuries.

Furkan Korkmaz’s injury

We had talked about how the untimely injury to Furkan Korkmaz.  That injury not only set his development back, but it derailed the timeline of other decisions as well. Those decisions are about who  the team intends to retain in the off-season. You may guess that a 6-foot-7 wing is worth a great deal in this NBA if he can deliver the 3-and-D.  Without Korkmaz, the team is now trying out another 6-foot-7 wing, James Young. At the moment, those decisions have yet to be determined.  Still, it may have triggered the Philadelphia 76ers to move on from Jacob Pullen on January 4, 2018.

But the team is also caught in the “how do you augment this roster” as well. Without visual evidence of how Markelle Fultz compliments Ben Simmons or Joel Embiid, that remains a significant unknown. And with that huge unknown, other pieces which will be fitted into the roster, are equally unknown.

So the team must fall back to the old “tried and true” methods of auditioning players via 10-day contracts.  And for now, they need that flexibility to aim unknown players at an uncertain fit to address undetermined needs.  Who will that be?  That’s a good topic for another story. For now, the 14 player roster and the availability of 10-day contracts to NBA teams today, January 5, 2018, seems like an ideal situation.

Next: If the Sixers get the No. 1 pick, Luka Doncic is the answer

Winning is step one.  Rounding out the roster is step two.  Look for news about the team to happen in the very near future. The 2018 NBA Draft is loaded with talent. 10-day contracts can help the team close in on exactly who will most benefit the team on NBA Draft day.