Sixers: Ranking backup center options ahead of playoffs

Ranking the Sixers’ backup centers — 1. Paul Reed

Paul Reed should be the Sixers’ primary backup center. If Doc Rivers is going to stick with one person, then it should be Reed. He’s probably too young for Rivers’ taste, but the 22-year-old NBA sophomore has proven himself at every turn. He won G-League MVP last season, and when afforded the opportunity to play NBA minutes this season, Reed has consistently turned in good results.

At 6-foot-9, Reed is smaller than Jordan or Bassey. He’s not the same run-jump traditional lob threat. He doesn’t bang bodies in the post the same way, he doesn’t crash the glass with the same force (10.2 rebounds per 36 minutes), and he doesn’t always stick to his strengths offensively. That said, Reed is still the best option here. He’s too talented, hard-working, and unique to be overlooked for too long.

Reed is already a supremely gifted disruptor. Aside from Thybulle and Embiid, very few players can make the opposing offense scramble like Reed. He does it by sheer force of will too. Reed plays hard. If hustle were a skill (and it very much is), then Reed is the most skilled hustler on the team. He fights around screens, he takes it personally when he’s isolated on the perimeter, he can make weak-side blocks look routine, and he’s a deflection machine in the mold of former Sixer Robert Covington. Reed averages 3.0 steals and 1.8 blocks per 36 minutes. He is straight-up the best defender the Sixers have behind Embiid, even if he doesn’t operate in the most traditional manner for a center.

Offensively, Reed has shown more than enough skill to get by in the NBA. He’s an excellent 3-point shooter in the G-League, and while that hasn’t quite translated to the NBA, his work ethic is shooting touch warrant optimism (even if the mechanics mean his attempts will always be limited). Reed can adequately fulfill the rim-running role next to James Harden too.

Reed has not always played within himself offensively, and he would need to buy into a very specific offensive role next to Harden, but the talent and will to win is there. Reed’s singular defensive presence and absolute non-stop motor should earn him a real look from Doc Rivers ahead of the playoffs. Unfortunately, the operative word there is should.