The Philadelphia 76ers do not have many roster holes at this juncture, but they do have one spot where they are a tad more vulnerable –– the center position off the bench. As such, their decision to not pursue Andre Drummond for another go-round could backfire later down the road. That is more so the case since the veteran big man did not just join another team. After all, he signed a contract with their biggest obstacle in the East in the Knicks.
Drummond signed a one-year, veteran's minimum deal with the reigning champs early in free agency, giving New York an instant relief for the departure of Mitchell Robinson. On the flip side, Joel Embiid's possible backups this season are all unproven players, which makes it quite confounding that the front office did not exert more effort to bring Drummond back when he did not even cost a lot to bring in.
The 76ers could deeply regret letting Andre Drummond go to the Knicks
Had the 76ers brought Drummond back, the Knicks would not have a more direct replacement for Robinson, whose value as a tenacious offensive rebounder ended up being a real asset for New York in their scoring attack. Drummond is just as capable as, if not better than, Robinson when it comes to corralling boards, so his signing is crucial for the Knicks.
But more importantly, the 76ers simply lost a key player from last season. Drummond was quite a reliable big man for the second unit. While he declined as a finisher and rim deterrent, his rebounding remained elite. Heck, he even managed to add some spot-up shooting to his game, hitting open threes at a very respectable rate.
Drummond would have been the perfect backup for Embiid at this juncture. The 76ers never had enough financial juice to bring in a firmer option at center off the bench. Now, they will have to settle for whoever unproven big man shows out the most during training camp.
The 76ers are not situated in a way that losing Drummond will bury them next season. However, his impressive production when scaled to his limited minutes will be sorely missed, especially now that there is still a thick cloud over the team's backup center situation.
Letting him go to the Knicks will also not do the 76ers any favors. New York should not miss a ton by replacing Robinson with Drummond –– a proposition that would not have even emerged in the first place had Philly wanted the veteran back.
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