The Philadelphia 76ers are now in the playoffs, but that does not change the fact that the team will stumble upon loads of questions come offseason time. A total of 10 of the 18 players on their roster are slated to hit the open market, which presents an ideal opportunity for the team to start thinking about a turnover of some sorts to patch up the holes they are still tending to.
One area that still needs bolstering is their depth at the center position. Be that as it may, there is one name the 76ers should probably avoid at all costs –– Nick Richards. While he has become such a popular frontcourt target in recent years, the front office can do better than him given his redundant skill set.
Richards, who is currently with the Bulls, will be a free agent this year. Suffice to say that he did not have a great individual campaign, though. In 48 games split between Phoenix and Chicago this season, he has averaged just 5.8 points, 5.1 rebounds, and 0.9 swats per outing on 51.2 percent shooting from the field –– figures that certainly do not pop off the page.
The 76ers have better options than Nick Richards in free agency
Philadelphia does not need just sheer depth, in quantifiable terms, when it comes to building that cushion behind Joel Embiid. What they need is functional depth, and the prospect of adding a player who is essentially of the exact same ilk as the other in-house options on the roster is simply counterintuitive.
For that reason, the 76ers should steer clear from Richards. Adem Bona, who is younger, can bring the same things to the table in a much more efficient way. Andre Drummond, who might get re-signed this summer, is still a huge presence on the boards who has found a way to be impactful on offense by being a respectable floor spacer.
Richards is simply far too inefficient as a play finisher and unreliable as a rim deterrent that he should not be among the primary options for the 76ers if they go on the hunt for another big body off the bench. The team would be much better off going after a big man who can, say, stretch the floor or score on post-ups. That variance in skill set will surely shore up their depth behind Embiid.
The 76ers brain trust will have ample leeway to build the roster on the margins, but they need to be smart in such a way that they should actively refrain from skill set overlaps. In that regard, Nick Richards should be a no-no for them, as they already have better players touting the same package on their current loop.
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