Doc Rivers and the Sixers have settled on the idea of a nine-man rotation ahead of the 2022 playoffs. The only question now is who exactly will Rivers’ nine men be? Philadelphia has been mixing and matching the bench units all season, and with only a few weeks left in the regular season, there’s a real ticking clock for Rivers to figure out his bench.
The starting five is set in stone — Joel Embiid, Tobias Harris, Matisse Thybulle, James Harden, Tyrese Maxey. While there are valid concerns about Thybulle’s offense, there is no reason to make changes right now. The focus falls instead on the four bench spots, for which Rivers is essentially pulling from two separate pools: the backup centers (DeAndre Jordan, Paul Millsap, Paul Reed, Charles Bassey) and the perimeter reinforcements (Georges Niang, Shake Milton, Danny Green, Furkan Korkmaz, Isaiah Joe).
In the end, Rivers will have to pick one backup center and three perimeter backups. Here’s who he should pick, and why…
Who should make up the Sixers’ bench: Georges Niang
Georges Niang has been the Sixers’ most consistent bench player all season. He does exactly what he’s paid to do: chuck 3s, make quick decisions, and play hard. He has trimmed all the fat from his game. Niang’s quick trigger is what makes him so essential to Philadelphia’s bench, and it has led to fast chemistry with both Joel Embiid and James Harden.
At 6-foot-7, the Mini-Van doesn’t always hold up defensively. He’s slow-footed, weak on the glass, and has a tendency to die on screens. But, on a two-year and $6.7 million contract, it’s hard to complain. The Sixers don’t always have the personnel to mask Niang’s limited athleticism, but that’s an indictment on the rest of the roster, not Niang. Philadelphia can’t afford to be picky, because Niang is — simply stated — the only bench player who shows up every night.
His ability to supply multiple made 3s per game makes him the only real certainty when strategizing the Sixers’ bench unit. Doc Rivers is building out from Niang. Not only is he the de facto sixth man, but on most nights, he is closing games with the Sixers’ big four.