Philadelphia 76ers: Don’t overvalue Furkan Korkmaz
Philadelphia 76ers reserve wing Furkan Korkmaz has had a few head turning games, but the fans shouldn’t be so quick to jump on his bandwagon.
It has been an eventful season thus far for the Philadelphia 76ers and one of the more subtle story lines has been the development of second year player Furkan Korkmaz. It would be inaccurate to say that Korkmaz hasn’t had some impressive stretches this season as well as shown considerable development. However, to believe that he should have a solidified future with the franchise wouldn’t be completely warranted.
The rise of Korkmaz began this past offseason during the NBA Summer League where he had a 40 point outing. In the 17 games Korkmaz has played in, he’s had four double digit games scoring and has shot above 40.0 percent from the 3-point line four times. Korkmaz has shown growth across the board from last season as well.
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On the flip side, there are still some areas of legit concern for the former first round pick. Besides requesting a trade (subscription need to read) earlier this season, which isn’t a good look for a second year player, Korkmaz has some concerns on the court as well.
The wing player may have had slight improvement on defense, but Korkmaz is still a liability on that end and that’s not even the biggest concern in his game going forward. He’s been too inconsistent of a shooter thus far as well. In 14 games, Korkmaz has attempted at least one 3-point attempt and of those 14, there were 8 games he failed to convert a single 3-point attempt. On top of that, he’s only shot 30.2 percent from downtown for the season and that’s not good considering he attempts 2.5 per game.
Let’s be clear, Korkmaz is still young and has time to become a more consistent shooter. Based on the amount of development Korkmaz has shown, it may have been the best decision for the franchise to deny his rookie option.
The main reason why the team’s relying on the him currently is due to the team’s lack of depth. Wilson Chandler has had problems with his health this season and the Jimmy Butler trade has left a hole in the bench rotation with J.J. Redick rejoining the starting five. Whenever the Sixers fill the final roster spot, there’s a good chance that Korkmaz ends up back on the bench for most games.
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Until Korkmaz provides more consistent shooting, it’s hard to see him contributing for the Philadelphia 76ers playoff run. Head coach Brett Brown will certainly tighten the bench rotation in the postseason and Korkmaz will, in all likelihood, lose his minutes. It’s true that he’s shown improvement in year two of his NBA career, but he’s still too inconsistent to be considered as a reliable role player moving forward.