The Philadelphia 76ers will see a handful of important players hit free agency this offseason. While the team has some spending power to keep those who are more vital to the program, they do not have enough to retain all of them, meaning that concessions will have to be made and replacements pursued.
One free agent who could prove to be particularly enticing for the 76ers is Luke Kennard. With Quentin Grimes projected to be a bona fide flight risk in the open market, the front office could take a hard look at replacing him with the veteran sharpshooter. However, in the grand scheme of things, that could easily end up being a huge mistake given Kennard's innate liabilities and tendencies that could very well throw the team off.
Kennard, who is pushing 30 years old, split time last season with the Hawks and the Lakers. He was more productive in Los Angeles, where he was even a key player for them in the playoffs when both Luka Doncic and Austin Reaves were sidelined due to injuries. He turned in a respectable campaign for LA, but his hypothetical fit in Philly leaves a lot to be desired.
The 76ers should stay away from Luke Kennard in free agency
The one thing which Kennard does really well is shoot three-pointers. He converted on 47.8 percent of his triples last season, leading the league in three-point shooting percentage. With the 76ers putting an emphasis on getting more shooters, signing Kennard sounds like an intuitive route to take, right?
Well, hold your horses. Kennard is infamous for being incredibly selective with his shot attempts. He only takes wide, wide open three-pointers, and while that is not a bad thing in and of itself, it simply goes to show that his lofty shooting clip should be taken into perspective in view of his limited volume for someone of his caliber.
Unlike Grimes, Kennard is also not much of a secondary playmaker. Sure, he keeps the ball moving, but he does not have the shot creation skills nor the burst to initiate actions and keep the defense on its toes. Defensively, he is not one who necessarily lacks effort as a stopper, but his point-preventing skills are certainly not worth writing home about.
Luke Kennard will likely cost less than Quentin Grimes, but the 76ers have specific criteria they have to meet for someone who figures to replace their nominal sixth man. It is clear that the former leaves more boxes unticked with his skill set, which does not make him an ideal replacement for their potentially outgoing guard.
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