Charles Bassey can be a quality backup center for the Sixers

The depth center for the Philadelphia 76ers has been in a weird situation since the departure of Andre Drummond due to the acquisition of James Harden. Before Drummond was traded, the depth was pretty well established.

MVP candidate Joel Embiid was the starter of course and Drummond was the clear-cut backup for the All-Star center. Behind him were young bigs Paul Reed and Charles Bassey. Sadly, that stability is now gone with Drummond now the starter for the Brooklyn Nets.

The Sixers acquired Paul Millsap in the Harden trade and signed DeAndre Jordan after the big man was waived by the Los Angeles Lakers. Despite the fact that neither veteran has been on the team long, both have leapfrogged the club’s young bigs on the depth chart. However, Philly’s first year center in Bassey is making his case for minutes now.

Bassey is making the case that he can be the Sixers’ backup now.

For a rookie only averaging 3.0 points and 2.7 rebounds with the 76ers this season, doesn’t appear to be able to handle backup center minutes for a title contender. However, he’s shined in limited minutes with the Sixers early on this year, but that’s not the main reason why this article is advocating for him to be the primary backup.

It’s his performance in the G-League with the Delaware Blue Coats which should get Philly’s coaching staff’s attention. In particular, Bassey had a break-out performance that was acknowledged by ESPN.

Yes, you read that correctly, Bassey had a 30 plus-point and 20 plus-rebound game. This hasn’t been a one-game occurrence. Look at the highlights below and see how good he has shown to be.

In short, Bassey is too good to be in the G-League. This season with the Sixers’ G-League affiliate, Bassey has averaged 18.3 points, 10.1 rebounds, and 3.6 blocks, while shooting 63.3 percent from the field. He should be given the opportunity to become the club’s backup center because the evidence showing he can be better than the current veterans is becoming overwhelming.

Don’t be mistaken, I’ve also advocated for Reed to get minutes over the veterans and I still hold to that. In reality, head coach Doc Rivers can’t go wrong with either young big man and both have legit cases for minutes in the Sixers’ rotation. However, Bassey’s case has been more evident as of late.