Philadelphia 76ers: Ranking every player on the 2018-19 roster post-trade deadline
13. Zhaire Smith
Only the Philadelphia 76ers would have a first-round pick’s season waylaid by sesame seeds.
Zhaire Smith was expected to provide a lockdown super-athletic wing defender the Sixers desperately need. Those plans did not change even when he was not expected to begin play until December due to a broken foot (Ben Simmons’ disease) suffered in August.
However, a severe allergic reaction to either sesame seeds or a food product with sesame oil caused him to be hospitalized and suffer a severe drop in weight. While this weekend he should have been chasing Steph Curry around as the NBA champ Warriors visited the Sixers, he was instead up in Maine for a Friday night G-League game, as the Delaware Blue Coats played the Red Claws for his very first game action of the season.
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When the Sixers traded for the 6-foot-4 Smith after the Phoenix Suns took him with the No. 16 pick (in return for Mikal Bridges and a 2021 Miami unprotected pick), the team was under no illusions he was a finished product.
Having played mostly power forward at Texas Tech, it was going to take time for him to learn the skills to play guard. But he was expected to be able to contribute quickly as a wing defender thanks to his natural athletic ability. In just a couple of light practices with the big club, coach Brett Brown says Smith has a natural ‘bounce’ to him.
If recent additions James Ennis and Jonathon Simmons continue to play poorly, maybe Smith still has time to help the Sixers.