2. Andre Drummond should quickly prove himself as a bang-for-the-buck addition for the 76ers
Philadelphia entered the offseason aware of the fact that they must exhaust all options to strengthen its depth behind Joel Embiid, whose long absence last season exposed their lack of other playable big men aside from the 2023 MVP. They addressed that quickly this summer, signing Andre Drummond to a two-year, $10 million contract that should age like wine.
The 76ers had their eyes on prying Drummond away from Chicago last season before the trade deadline, but the Bulls puzzlingly stalled his inevitable exit. Now, Philly has reunited with the former All-Star and should realize pretty quickly how big of a discount they got with one of the league's best bench operators since his permanent role realignment a few years back.
Despite limited playing time as Nikola Vucevic's backup in Windy City, Drummond showcased why he's an all-time rebounder. In just 17.1 minutes per game, he registered 8.4 points and nine rebounds a game. He led the NBA in rebounds per 36 minutes at a staggering 18.9 boards per contest. Clearly, the 76ers should feel much better about their chances of winning the games Embiid will inevitably miss.