Ranking every player on the Sixers’ 2021-22 roster

Ranking every player on the Sixers roster — 8. Andre Drummond

Easily the Sixers’ noisiest offseason addition, Andre Drummond is set to back up the man who once clowned him openly on national television. All jokes aside, Drummond now arrives in Philadelphia with a chip on his shoulder, his career on the line, and the chance to end a long streak of underwhelming reserve centers behind Joel Embiid.

Just a couple seasons ago, Drummond was an All-Star and a rebounding champion. He’s still one of the NBA’s top rebounders right now, and his raw talent has been readily apparent in preseason action. There’s a reason he signed in Philly on a minimum contract — Drummond does not come without flaws — but there is also a reason Drummond is a household name. He’s a legitimately good player.

Last year, Drummond was stuck between two unfortunate situations. The Cavs benched him in favor of player development, while the Lakers were simply a bad fit. Drummond would do well to adjust his expectations in Philadelphia, where he can’t freelance offensively or seek out post-ups every possession, but the Sixers’ second unit is much more conducive to Drummond’s offensive success than the Lakers’ spacing-deprived starting five.

Where Drummond should look to make the biggest impact is on defense. He will naturally dominate the defensive glass, but Drummond’s overarching effort on the defensive end has been known to waver. It can’t in Philadelphia, where he’s simply not guaranteed minutes. Drummond is an excellent defender when he wants to be, but that has to be the case every possession.

Despite some well-documented woes, Drummond is coming off a season in which he averaged 14.9 points and 12.0 rebounds. You don’t stumble into that level of production by accident. When optimized, Drummond is good enough to start on most teams. He should be Embiid’s best backup center to date. That said, we said the same thing about Dwight Howard last year.