Philadelphia 76ers: Boban Marjanovic could be useless in playoffs

The Philadelphia 76ers will need to limit their reliance on Boban Marjanovic in the postseason.

It has been spoken about at great length in the past, but it’s becoming abundantly clear that Boban Marjanovic‘s postseason role will be severely limited for the Philadelphia 76ers. He’s simply too limited in certain scenarios.

Brett Brown has leaned on Boban as Joel Embiid‘s primary backup since the All-Star break, but the 7-foot-3 center has struggled in recent games. His size has advantages, but his inability to defend in space can cripple the Sixers’ defense.

There are theoretical matchups in which Boban has value — with Detroit and Miami representing potential first-round matchups in which Marjanovic could warrant playing time. Even the Nets, who tend to go extremely small, struggled to contain Boban at times last week.

More from Sixers News

In the postseason, though, teams will engineer their game plan to exploit the Sixers’ greatest weaknesses. That means throwing Boban into as many pick-and-rolls as possible and making a concerted effort to isolate him on the perimeter.

Stretch fives and quicker bigs will carve Boban to pieces, regardless of his overwhelming length and strength. It’s those limitations that will force Brown to adjust, something that has been more prevalent in recent games.

Early in his Sixers tenure, Brown was committed to exploring the Boban experience to its fullest extent. Now that Marjanovic’s flaws have been well-documented, however, Brown seems less inclined to recklessly deploy the gentle giant.

Jonah Bolden made his case for more minutes on Saturday, notching 19 points on 5/7 three-point shooting and defending Karl-Anthony Towns at a high level. Foul trouble has plagued Bolden all season, but he’s the most versatile center behind Embiid in the rotation. Even Amir Johnson has more utility than Boban in certain matchups.

There are few players more unique than Marjanovic, the biggest player in the NBA and, perhaps, one of the most matchup-dependent. Size alone gives him a perpetual matchup advantage in the paint, but his defensive success is determined almost exclusively by who he’s facing.

Once the Sixers get past the first-round (assuming that happens, of course), Marjanovic will become virtually useless. The Raptors, Celtics and Bucks all have floor-spacing, versatile bigs who will pound Boban at his weakest points. The Pacers also have the personnel to work Boban off the court.

Next. 2019 NBA Draft Big Board 4.0. dark

Since rotations get shorter in the postseason, Embiid’s minutes will presumably go up. Brown may also use Mike Scott and Ben Simmons as small-ball centers more often. Whatever the case, expect Boban’s minutes to drop significantly once the regular season ends.

Philadelphia 76ers: Boban Marjanovic could be least useful center in playoffs

By Christopher Kline | Apr 1, 2019

The Philadelphia 76ers will need to limit their reliance on Boban Marjanovic in the postseason.