Must Philadelphia 76ers keep Belinelli and Redick?

Sixers painted into a corner

The Philadelphia 76ers entered the 2017-2018 season with significant depth at the wing positions. The team had Jerryd Bayless, J.J. Redick, Markelle Fultz, Timothe Luwawu-Cabarrot, Furkan Korkmaz, Robert Covington, Justin Anderson, Nik Stauskas and even a part-time role of Dario Saric. That is a compliment of nine players to a pair of lineup spots, plenty of depth right? Ah, if only the season followed the script.

The team didn’t play Nik Stauskas much before trading him. And the team never saw much playing time out of either Markelle Fultz or Furkan Korkmaz before both fell to injuries. Of the remaining players, neither Jerryd Bayless, Justin Anderson, nor TLC have popped much offense when they get playing time. The lion’s share of playing minutes, and scoring, has been handled by Robert Covington and J.J. Redick so far this season.

Development plan derailed

The plan seems fairly transparent. But signing Redick to a one-year high dollar contract, Colangelo bet on the team developing his replacement over the course of this season. Whether that meant Fultz, or Kormaz, or TLC, one of the trio had to rise and project as Redick’s replacement. So far, none have come close to doing so. So the team is now pushed to reformulate a new plan.  We know that the Philadelphia 76ers have a center, a power forward, and a small forward on international rosters this season who will likely join the team next year. But shooting guards? Nada.

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So the Philadelphia 76ers must either plan to re-sign Redick and or Belinelli, or shop the free agent market once more in the hopes of signing another solid perimeter shooter for a year. My bet is that they make a run for Redick, and depending on Belinelli’s production in this shortened season/post-season, put an offer on the table for him as well. The team could put another $20 million dollar contract on the table for Redick, and if the value is there, a $5 million for Belinelli. That allows the team a sum of about $6 Million for draft picks. Trading Bayless gives the team another $8.5 million to play with, placing the team at nearly $15 million before looking to sign NBA draft selections.  In the end, the Philadelphia 76ers need to rethink that 2018-2019 roster. Not re-signing Redick and or Belinelli could be very problematic next season.