Sixers: How soon can Paul Reed and Charles Bassey contribute?

For the Philadelphia 76ers, backup center has been a problem ever since Joel Embiid joined the starting lineup.  It is natural for there to be a drop-off when a star player goes to the bench, but for the Sixers, that drop has been right off a cliff.

This past season, the Sixers’ most consistent two-way backup big man was Tony Bradley, but he was dealt at the trade deadline for George Hill, which in hindsight looks like a terrible decision.  The “Ben Simmons at center” experiment always looked awkward and Dwight Howard, praised for his energy and positive veteran presence, is probably off fouling people in a gym somewhere as we speak.  So what is the Sixers’ answer for this serious issue?

There are very few talented backup centers in free agency and most of them will probably ask for more than their worth. (Robin Lopez or Daniel Theis, anyone?)  But after last night’s draft it’s fair to look at the Sixers current roster and wonder if they may already have the backup of the future on their team.

The Sixers have gone through a revolving door of mediocre backup centers. Can Paul Reed end that cycle?

Last year with the 58th pick the 76ers took a late flyer on a still-developing jumping jack out of DePaul who seemed to fall because he was deemed too skinny and too old (21!) to grow into an NBA big man.  Bball Paul Reed was not a household name and did not contribute much to the Sixers this past season but he took full advantage of his two-way contract to grow as a player, sharpen his skills, and generally dominate the G-League for the Delaware Blue Coats.  He averaged 22.3 points, almost 12 boards, and almost four “stocks” per game while jumping over and around people inside and shooting a robust 44 percent from 3-point land, coming out of nowhere to win the league MVP.  Suddenly everyone was forced to rethink how high his ceiling might be.

Let’s not  go crazy, Reed will never be an All-Star level player, but he looks to be talented and active enough to play and contribute off the bench as soon as this season. When he played for the Sixers last year, the game seemed to be moving too quickly for him and he frequently rushed and looked out of place.  However, his G-League experience seems to indicate that if he is given a consistent role with consistent minutes, his confidence and his game could take off.

Reed is not a traditional big man and part of the issue is whether he will be better off at the power forward or center position.  With a little squinting his G-League film reminds you of Shawn Merion, who also played both positions and is often credited as one of the first “small ball 5s”.  “The Matrix” was obviously better than Reed at just about everything (including in the nickname department), but that is the style of player that he should emulate.

Merion had amazing feet and could legitimately guard 1-5 (in the era of handchecking), but Reed can still legitimately guard 3-5 and switch out against guards on screens.  They have similar body types, with Merion listed as 6-foot-8, 220 pounds and Reed at 6-foot-9, 220. Both have truly ugly jump shots, but as long as Reed continues to shoot a decent percentage, the end result is beautiful.  Both guys are high motor, high energy, bouncy bodies, exploding out of nowhere for dunks or blocks.  Reed, like Merion, can lock down his own man but is a better defender when given the freedom to move and help, disrupting the other team’s O with his long arms, quick hands, and terrific instincts.

To reiterate, Reed is no star but he can play a style like Merion, with the expectation that he can be a nice piece off the bench, probably as soon as this season. Merion was constant motion without the ball and Reed can stand to improve in that area. After Ben Simmons is traded the team will need more power forwards behind Tobias Harris, and Reed is ready for a bigger load.  If he can prove that he can handle it he may even be able to earn himself a few additional minutes backing up Embiid at the five.

The Sixers selected two bigs in the 2021 NBA Draft, and Charles Bassey is expected to join the team next season.

The Sixers have long desired a stretch five who can extend the defense and shoot the 3 and they may have added that player with the 50th pick in the draft, but since Filip Petrusev looks like a sign-and-stash who won’t come over this year, we will hold off on adding him to this discussion.  Petrusev is a highly skilled offensive player, with a soft touch on his jumper and good instincts as a passer.  He dominated as both the WCC player of the year at Gonzaga and last year as the MVP of the extremely talented European ABA league.  He’s ready right now on O, but the problem is his defense, on and off ball, both of which are seriously lacking. Hopefully with another year of work  they will be able to add him to the mix.

More intriguing for next year, they were able to add another skilled center with the 53rd pick in the draft.  Charles Bassey, who had been a top-10 player coming out of high school and believed by many to be a late first round talent, had been projected by several sites to go to the 76ers at 28 but fell to the end of the second round where the Sixers were happy to snatch him up.  Players fall in the draft for lots of unknown reasons, perhaps because the league thinks juniors are old (he will turn the dreaded 21 in October), or perhaps because he chose a smaller school in Western Kentucky, but whatever the reason, his drop is the Sixers’ gain.

Bassey has an NBA body right now and will be ready to push people around from the moment he sets foot in the gym. At a strong and solid 6-foot-11, 240 pounds with a 7-foot-3 wingspan, Bassey has drawn comparisons to Bismack Biyombo and Serge Ibaka.  Those aren’t sexy names but they clearly paint a picture of who to expect bouncing off the Sixers bench. Like Biyombo and Ibaka, Bassey brings a bruiser mentality and will rebound, set killer screens, and block shots, hopefully while drawing fewer fouls than Howard.

Like Reed, Bassey is another guy with a high motor and boundless energy.  Unlike Reed, Bassey comes with no questions about his frame and will rebound and play physical with just about anyone.  He has a nice touch on short shots around the rim and is a terrific rim runner, setting hard picks and then rolling in for lob dunks. He has even been working on deeper jumpers and while his 3 is still a work in progress, the form isn’t bad and he is willing to shoot it. He will block shots and rebound immediately, but the one question mark is how well he will be able to defend guards on perimeter switches.  He struggled with that in college and the guards only get faster and more skilled at this level.  If he is going to earn playing time he will have to be able to keep shifty guards in front of him.

If we were to guess who will get more time off the Sixers bench next season, the smart money would be on Reed.  He has a year under his belt, knows the scheme, got all that critical playing time in the G-League, and has had the benefit of working with the 76er players and coaches during the offseason.  On top of that, second year players with potential usually see a bump in minutes as they gain experience and their team begins the process of assessing the value for his next contract in a few years.

As an older draft pick with all of the necessary physical tools for success it would be easy to predict that Bassey would get a shot to be the Sixers number two center, but Doc Rivers has a long history of not giving significant playing time to rookies.  Tyrese Maxey seemed to impress every time he stepped on the floor but he still had to work hard to earn his 15 minutes per game.  If Bassey is going to earn those minutes he will have to prove that he can be trusted on those pesky defensive switches.

It would not be shocking to see both players become significant contributors off the bench for this team next year but there are a lot of factors to consider.  As one of the best teams in the East (we hope), the minutes may be hard to come by.  And then there is the elephant sized point guard in the room.  Simmons is sure to be traded and there could conceivably be a domino effect of players who are moved to adjust to the changes, so it is difficult to even properly say what this team will look like next season.  But these two are talented and seem to be in a good position to earn minutes, so anything is possible.  It would not be a shock if one or both of these two guys became the new fan favorites off the bench and it would be a refreshing change to see Joel Embiid on the bench and have your heart skip a beat because of excitement and not because of panic.