Philadelphia 76ers: 3 players who may not return next season

With the NBA season in limbo, it seems to be the time to review which possible players won’t return to the Philadelphia 76ers next season.

The rest of this NBA season has been put on due to the coronavirus outbreak. With there still being no timeline for a return to game action, it isn’t a bad time to evaluate which players may not come back to the Philadelphia 76ers next season.

To keep it simple, this article won’t include players that could get traded or waived.  Players that have partially guaranteed contracts or player/team options on their deals will also be excluded from this list. This list will only consider players enter free agency.

Raul Neto

To be honest, I wasn’t in love with the Sixers signing Raul Neto this past summer and this season has solidified that opinion. Yes, there have been times that Neto has played well and yes, he can run the offseason better than Trey Burke did (before he was waived). However, there have also been times Neto has been overmatched and ineffective.

“Using a pick on a point guard seems like a smart move for the 76ers and it would certainly mean the end of Neto’s tenure with the Sixers.”

This season, he’s averaged 4.3 points and 1.6 assists, while making 45.1 percent of his shots and 39.4 percent of his 3-pointers in 11.5 minutes per game. While his offense wasn’t eye-popping, his defense was even more concerning. He had the worst Defensive Rating and Defensive Box Plus/Minus of his career.

Neto has proven unplayable against stronger competition. If the 76ers want to have a stronger bench next season, Neto has to go. Brand could upgrade the position via free agency or the 2020 NBA Draft.

In the past, I suggested that point guard is the biggest position of need for Philly entering the draft. Using a pick on a point guard seems like a smart move for the 76ers and it would certainly mean the end of Neto’s tenure with the Sixers.