The Philadelphia 76ers entered the offseason looking for a clear upgrade at the center position off the bench. Well, at this juncture, it is easier to argue that the front office has not really ticked that box off yet. That makes it all the more regrettable that the team simply allowed someone like Jonas Valanciunas to slip past them in the open market without much reported resistance on their part.
Valanciunas is reportedly on his way to leave the NBA and head back to Europe, which effectively takes him out of the free agency market. Well, that is a missed opportunity for the 76ers, who were handed a clear upgrade at center in his person yet were never even reported to have registered real interest in the veteran big man.
Joel Embiid might have proven that he remains an elite player last season, but the superstar big man is still going to miss a significant number of games moving forward, albeit by design. As such, the front office needs to install a more proven option at center to help fill his void when he is sidelined. Valanciunas was the clear option for that role, but that door has now been shut.
The 76ers absolutely fumbled the bag by not signing Jonas Valanciunas
Valanciunas, who spent 14 years in the NBA for six different teams, will be signing a contract with Zalgiris Kaunas, a Lithuanian team that is also a participant in the Euroleague. He had a very productive career in the NBA, but his role has gotten drastically shafted in recent years, which probably led to his decision to head back to Europe.
Be that as it may, the Lithuanian big man still showed that he had more than enough gas left in the tank last season. Despite averaging just 13.4 minutes a night for the Nuggets as Nikola Jokic's backup, he still registered 8.7 points and 5.1 rebounds per outing on over 58 percent shooting from the field.
76ers still need a reliable backup big man
The 76ers have a slew of big men who will be competing for minutes, but none of them can compare to what Valanciunas is capable of doing on the offensive end. Bench scoring remains a pressing issue for this group, and the veteran could have been a positive reinforcement on that front with his post scoring.
Now, Philadelphia will have to make do with the glut of big men they have in the fold, although picking one from them, given their overlapping skill sets, will be difficult. Well, Jonas Valanciunas would have easily created some separation from the field, but that is no longer an option for the 76ers thanks to their own inaction.
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