Ranking the Sixers’ young core — 4. Furkan Korkmaz
Furkan Korkmaz has turned into a remarkably steady presence for the Sixers. He’s a known quantity. Put him on the floor, and he will more or less do the same thing every night — move off the ball, chuck 3s, attack errant closeouts, and supply the second unit with some real spunk.
There are definite drawbacks to Korkmaz. He’s not the most consistent shooter on the planet, and his defense is a problem, even if he has shown some improvement at 6-foot-7. That’s not enough to knock him out of the top four. He’s locked up for at least three more years, and is the borderline sixth man in Doc Rivers’ eyes.
The Sixers need shooters for as long as Embiid is the offensive centerpiece. Even if Korkmaz can’t match Joe shot for shot, he does have tremendous chemistry with Embiid. That two-man game grew in leaps and bounds last season, becoming a staple of the offense whenever they shared the floor. That chemistry and Korkmaz’s reputation probably matters more than whether or not Joe can “out-shoot” him.
If the defense continues to improve, then there’s no reason to expect a decline in minutes. He provided legitimate positional versatility last season, even spending stretches as the de facto stretch four. He has some muscle on his bones, which was not the case when he arrived from Europe. At just 24 years old, Korkmaz still has room to grow.