In yet another expected drubbing, the Philadelphia 76ers delivered the goods on the loss column, losing their sixth straight game to fall to 15-26 on the season. Now 11 games below .500, the team’s chances at making the playoffs are diminishing with each passing game.
At this rate, this has to be the expected result on a near nightly basis. The 76ers are slated for some pretty tough matchups over the next few weeks, and their putrid record against teams with winning records signify that they are most likely going to turn in more losses along the way, especially with the team still hobbled by injuries.
To at least make this season count, Philadelphia’s brass has to seriously consider being sellers before the trade deadline. The team still has some usable assets they could leverage to extract assets from, opening up more possibilities for the front office to improve the team, at least with next season in mind.
The 76ers should consider trading Guerschon Yabusele before the deadline
One standout player for the 76ers this season is Guerschon Yabusele, who came over to Philly after a solid five-year stint in Europe and a breakout performance in the Olympics. And so far, he has been an absolute godsend.
Relatively speaking, Yabusele has been one of the team’s best players. In just 25.8 minutes per outing, he is logging 10.1 points, 5.4 rebounds and nearly two assists per game while shooting 50.7 percent from the field, which includes a staggering 39.6 percent success rate from three-point territory.
Yabusele, a natural forward, has been cudgeled into playing as a full-time center with Joel Embiid out. While the results have been mixed at best, individually speaking, this is reflective of his sheer versatility as a frontcourt player — making him an attractive option for potential buyers in the market.
The Frenchman should be able to fetch the 76ers some assets. While trading a solid contributor like Yabusele is far from ideal, the team is pretty limited in what it can offer for him next summer. This fact of him being a big flight risk should force the front office to consider dealing him while they can.
This season has been one of the worst ever for the Philadelphia 76ers franchise. Still, they should seek opportunities to at least make good out of it, and one road they can take is to sell Guerschon Yabusele hard before it’s too late.