It seems the Philadelphia 76ers' roster is set, but there was a small threat to the trio of two-way players on Sunday night.
When NBA insider Marc Stein released a roundup of NBA rumors, he suggested that the Dallas Mavericks were still wrestling with the idea of potentially letting go of the young center, Moussa Cisse.
For the past week or so, the Sixers have been linked to the second-year center as suitors. While the 76ers don't have enough financial wiggle room to fill the 15th spot on their roster, Cisse could've been acquired on a two-way deal. However, that would've called for a follow-up move.
A few players on notice
The Sixers entered training camp with two players signed to two-way deals. Rayan Rupert and Caleb Love had those titles, while a handful of players battled it out for the third and final spot.
We now know that Tacko Fall was the winner of the final two-way spot. The 30-year-old center didn't play in a single preseason game, but the Sixers are incredibly thin at center right now. Outside of Joel Embiid, they don't have any healthy bigs. Adem Bona is working his way back from a foot injury. Ariel Hukporti is out for the year with a torn Achilles, and Tacko Fall is still recovering from a hip injury.
It's unclear if Fall would've been a quick cut if the 76ers could get their hands on Cisse, who they clearly had interest in. But the other two probably didn't feel super secure about their place on the two-way roster after a quiet preseason.
Love started on a good note, posting 15 points and six assists in 23 minutes against the New York Knicks. From that point on, he struggled by shooting 3-17 from the field, and missing each of his nine shots from three over the next three games.
As for Rupert, he averaged 20.5 minutes of action across four games. He posted 5.0 points and 4.0 rebounds per game, while shooting just 27.3% from the field. Both players are on a developmental timeline, but Cisse would've brought enough true experience to threaten their spots.
With the Dallas Mavericks last season, Cisse appeared in 38 regular-season games, averaging 13.9 minutes off the bench. He shot 57.4% from the field, averaging 4.5 points per game. He also came down with 5.7 rebounds per game and had 1.2 blocks per game.
Cisse was in danger of getting cut by the Mavs, as it seemed Dallas wanted to keep rolling with Dwight Powell on the team. Considering the New York Knicks showed interest in Cisse months ago, and several teams, including the Sixers, Los Angeles Lakers, Chicago Bulls, and the Atlanta Hawks, were registering interest in the young center, it sent the Mavs a positive signal to keep him.
The Sixers must have a few guys breathing a sigh of relief on Monday.
Add us as a preferred source on Google