With the signing of Dewayne Dedmon after the NBA Trade Deadline, it appeared that the Philadelphia 76ers were done making moves heading into the playoffs. However, plans can change on a dime in the NBA, and the Cleveland Cavaliers buying out Kevin Love has appeared to do so for the Sixers.
According to Adrian Wojnarowski, the buyout is complete and while the Miami Heat are in the lead to sign Love, the 6-foot-8 big man plans to meet with Philly first before making a final decision. With that being the case, the Sixers need to go all in and sign the former Champion and All-Star.
The Philadelphia 76ers need to sign Kevin Love at all costs.
The biggest barring a signing of Love is that the franchise has no free roster spot. That means the 76ers would waive one of their current players. It would probably be Montrezl Harrell or Dedmon and if I had a choice it would be Dedmon based on his play with the Heat this season, but the case for Harrell could be made as well.
In the event, Love does decide to make Philly his next home and they do clear a roster spot for him, then he could bring in a lot to Philly’s second unit. There are three things Love can do for the bench in terms of outside shooting, rebounding, and passing.
This season Love has averaged 8.5 points, 6.8 rebounds, and 1.9 assists, while converting 35.4 percent from downtown in just 20.0 minutes per game. He can play either the four or five, but in most cases he’d play at center more often than not.
There is one negative with Love and that’s his defense. He’s never been a plus defender playing center for the Sixers would mean little if any rim protection. So if Love would become a part of the Sixers that means he would play based on matchups, which is fine if that happens.
Overall, getting a veteran with championship experience is something that the Philadelphia 76ers can’t afford not to have on their bench.