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A quick look into the Sixers’ acquisition of Mike Muscala

By Christopher Croom

CHARLOTTE, NC - JANUARY 26: Jeremy Lamb #3 of the Charlotte Hornets tries to stop Mike Muscala #31 of the Atlanta Hawks during their game at Spectrum Center on January 26, 2018 in Charlotte, North Carolina. 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. (Photo by Streeter Lecka/Getty Images)
CHARLOTTE, NC - JANUARY 26: Jeremy Lamb #3 of the Charlotte Hornets tries to stop Mike Muscala #31 of the Atlanta Hawks during their game at Spectrum Center on January 26, 2018 in Charlotte, North Carolina. 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. (Photo by Streeter Lecka/Getty Images) /
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A deeper dive into the Philadelphia 76ers acquisition of Mike Muscala

Thursday, news broke that there was a three-way trade, involving the Philadelphia 76ers, the Oklahoma City Thunder and the Atlanta Hawks. You can read about the details of the trade and a graded breakdown of it elsewhere on The Sixer Sense.

My main focus here is to give you details about the man slated to be the newest members of the Philadelphia 76ers: Mike Muscala.

Chances are, unless you really watch Atlanta Hawks basketball for some reason, you don’t know much about Muscala. I’ve spent some hours reviewing and looking at Muscala on film, reviewing the statistics, and considering the surrounding level of talent he achieved those statistics with.

I will bring those findings to you here. Lets dive into a quick look at the man Hawks faithful know as “Moose.”

Physical

Muscala brings to Philly a 6-foot-11, 230-pound frame, all at the age of 27. His wingspan reaches about 7-foot-1, with a max vertical of 33.5 and he is somewhat more athletic then the average NBA 7-footer.

Take a look at some athletic highlights below. You’ll see he flies through the air pretty aggressively for a guy who doesn’t get that high up.

 Numbers

You’ll look at 2017-2018 season per game numbers and ask yourself “what is there to be excited about?”

Maybe not much. Almost eight points a game, averaging half a block a game, and a three-point percentage that is just above league average.

But considering those numbers for a moment: Muscala has a career 49.1 percent average from the field, and despite a 20 minute a night average, his usage rating hasn’t topped 14 percent since his rookie season.

In advance stats, Muscala’s assist percentage (that stat that measures what percentage of teammate shots he assists on) is 37.3 percent. The big man assists on a third of his teammates shots. That’s a big deal to me.

Must Read: The Sixers are star-developing, too

Additionally, (per Ben Falk) Muscala’s favorite shooting spots are the corners, and the top of the arc. He shows a release that is similar to Robert Covington’s, and like Covington, Muscala doesn’t seem to have an trepidation about shooting the contested three.

CleaningtheGlass.com also cites Muscala in the top 81st percentile in shooting accuracy from the corners and slightly over 90 percent free throw shooter. This guy was meant to be a Sixer.

Basketball I.Q.

Watch the video below. This is a top ten of Moose. Pay particular attention to play number seven, and five.

On play number seven, watch Muscala’s head as he backs to the baseline. He looks over to see where his defender is and takes a southwest step to better free himself up for a pass and layup. The Sixers can use someone on the floor who is paying attention to spacing as Coach Brown loves to employ the pace-and-space offense on the floor.

On play number five, you will see Mike (and its subtle) take a downward step into the baseline. When the rebound pops high, he is able to slide backward from his place to take the rebound. Why is this important? He understands boxing out. He understands the concept of gaining position to prepare for a board. The Sixers could use more of that.

This may seem very minute, but it really is “details that win championships” (s/o to Kobe!)

The catch

Here is the catch: as of the time of this writing (late Thursday night into Friday morning), this trade is not official. There have been reports that Philadelphia may hold off on making this official, because something else is also in the works.

What may that be? There’s plenty of speculation to go around, but for the purposes of this analysis, there’s no need to go into any of it.

The overall

Should this be made official, I believe it to be a better pick up than Bjelica. It is a seemingly underwhelming acquisition, that will, as the season goes on, pay more dividends than any Sixers fan can anticipate now.

Fellow Sixer fans: this is part of the process. And its a good part.

Next: Sixers' lackluster offseason due to GM vacancy

Share your thoughts on the Muscala acquisition in the comments!