According to Jake Fischer of The Stein Line, the Philadelphia 76ers are still confident in Kyle Lowry and Eric Gordon’s ability to affect a playoff series. If that is true, it doesn’t bode well for the Sixers’ chances of a deep postseason run this season, even with the current state of the East.
“Eric Gordon and Kyle Lowry are two veterans that I do think the Sixers still believe can have some type of impact in a playoff series if and when Joel Embiid is healthy and that team is firmly in the mix in the postseason hierarchy in the Eastern Conference,” Fischer wrote.
Those two guys just aren’t the same players they once were.
Sixers just re-signed Kyle Lowry and Eric Gordon (which isn't ideal)
Both Lowry and Gordon have been solid NBA contributors throughout the course of their respective careers. And perhaps there’s a chance that they could give the Sixers real minutes throughout the season.
But Lowry is 39 years old and Gordon is 36 years old. If the Sixers are depending on those guys to play significant minutes in the postseason, then they aren’t prioritizing the right things around Embiid.
If Daryl Morey and Nick Nurse want to give Embiid, Tyrese Maxey, Paul George, and the rest of their roster their best chance to compete for a championship, they should find players much closer to the prime of their careers.
Last season, Lowry only appeared in 35 games for the 76ers, playing 18.8 minutes per contest. He averaged 3.9 points, 1.9 rebounds, and 2.7 assists while shooting 35.0% from the field and 33.0% from deep.
Meanwhile, Gordon appeared in 39 games, playing 19.7 minutes per contest. His counting stats were slightly better than Lowry’s, averaging 6.8 points, 1.2 rebounds, and 1.7 assists while shooting 42.6% from the field and 40.9% from deep.
Even with the context that the 76ers shut down a lot of their guys in an attempt to tank, Lowry and Gordon’s stats were still rough. And they aren’t getting any younger, either.
The fact that they were already as inefficient as they were last season in limited minutes proves that the Sixers should have tried to find other players to replace them in the rotation heading into this season.
But they didn’t, and if they truly believe that Lowry and Gordon will solve their problems in a playoff series, they could be in for a rude awakening.