The Sixer Sense
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Should the Philadelphia 76ers look to replace Robert Covington?

By Michael Bronson

PHILADELPHIA, PA - MAY 7: Head Coach Brett Brown and Robert Covington #33 of the Philadelphia 76ers talk during the game against the Boston Celtics during Game Four of the Eastern Conference Semifinals of the 2018 NBA Playoffs on May 5, 2018 at Wells Fargo Center in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. NOTE TO USER: User expressly acknowledges and agrees that, by downloading and or using this photograph, User is consenting to the terms and conditions of the Getty Images License Agreement. Mandatory Copyright Notice: Copyright 2018 NBAE (Photo by Jesse D. Garrabrant/NBAE via Getty Images)
PHILADELPHIA, PA - MAY 7: Head Coach Brett Brown and Robert Covington #33 of the Philadelphia 76ers talk during the game against the Boston Celtics during Game Four of the Eastern Conference Semifinals of the 2018 NBA Playoffs on May 5, 2018 at Wells Fargo Center in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. NOTE TO USER: User expressly acknowledges and agrees that, by downloading and or using this photograph, User is consenting to the terms and conditions of the Getty Images License Agreement. Mandatory Copyright Notice: Copyright 2018 NBAE (Photo by Jesse D. Garrabrant/NBAE via Getty Images) /
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Robert Covington, one of the Philadelphia 76ers’ top role players, struggled to make shots and didn’t consistently live up to his reputation as a great defender during the playoffs. Now in the offseason, should the Sixers look to get a better starting small forward?

"“During the second year of “The Process” when a seemingly never ending train of D-Leaguers arriving and departing the Philadelphia 76ers, Robert Covington was the only one to prove himself as not only a legitimate NBA player but a good NBA player worthy of a starting spot on at least 20 of the 30 NBA teams and could likely start for all 30 if you consider the possibility that Covington could realistically play shooting guard, small forward, and power forward.”"

The above quote is from this article I wrote making the case that Robert Covington was the Philadelphia 76ers’ most important role player. Having watched how he has played in all of the Sixers’ postseason games, I can’t help but to question whether I’ve been overrating Covington.

I wasn’t wrong about his 3-point shooting being a difference between the Sixers winning or losing to the Boston Celtics (he went 0-4 on three-point attempts in Game 1, 4-7 in Game 2, 0-5 in Game 3, 1-5 in Game 4, and 1-3 in Game 5), but after his disappointing play in the Miami Heat series, no one really expected much from him.

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With the exception of Game 2, I was concerned anytime Covington touched the ball. Covington has never had good ball handling, is the worst passer in the Sixers’ starting line up, and struggles to complete a layup anytime he is even slightly contested, so he basically adds nothing to the offense anytime his shot from behind the three-point line isn’t falling.

When it was announced that T.J. McConnell was replacing Covington in Game 4, any faith that I might have lost in coach Brett Brown was restored by his decision to replace the worst player in the starting line up with the best player off the bench. It’s sad that despite averaging 12.6 points, 2.0 assists, and 5.4 rebounds per game while making 36.9 percent of his shots from behind the three-point line during the regular season, Covington’s poor playoffs performance makes his four-year $62 million contract look bad.

He averaged 8.1 points, 2.5 assists, and 5.3 rebounds per game while making 31.3 percent of his shots from behind the three point line in the playoffs, so looking for a better player is likely to be a priority this offseason. Obviously, replacing him with LeBron James, Kawhi Leonard, or Paul George would be an easy and non-controversial way to permanently bench Covington, but should the Sixers’ look to replace him in a scenario were they fail to convince a superstar that plays the same position?

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Assuming that the Sixers were to re-sign J.J. Reddick and Markelle Fultz improves this offseason, a starting lineup of Ben Simmons, Redick, Fultz, Dario Saric, and Joel Embiid would be better than one that featured Covington. But the Sixers wouldn’t be in terrible position to start the 2018-19 season with Covington in their starting lineup, and he would still be a starter for at least half of the teams in the NBA.