No one in Philly is probably entertaining the thought of the 76ers losing in Game 7 and getting booted out of the playoffs in heartbreaking fashion, but that possibility is not a contrived one. As such, it is certainly worth thinking about the upgrades which the front office could pursue in the coming offseason, especially with more than half of the players on the roster expected to come off their books.
Fortifying their depth at center will once again be highly important. And in that regard, the 76ers might have just stumbled upon an ideal solution thanks to the Rockets, which have just been eliminated in the playoffs. Houston, after all, has a couple of big men in Steven Adams and Clint Capela who profile as upgrades for Philly at the big man position.
Houston will probably look to make some significant changes to their composition next season. They are starting to look like the odd man out in the West for the following campaigns, so a restructuring of their roster is probably already in the works. As a result, the 76ers should knock on their doors to see if they can get their hands on one of their veteran big men.
The 76ers could target Steven Adams or Clint Capela as the Rockets flame out early
Andre Drummond will be hitting the open market anew this year, which means that the 76ers could have a spot to usher in a new backup to Joel Embiid next season. This is a non-negotiable for the team, especially since the former MVP will only require an even more delicate way of handling his load given his injury history and the fact that he is not getting any younger.
Adams would be a bit of a costly get while also carrying an injury risk, but he is probably one of the most impactful big men in the league when it comes to his niche –– offensive rebounding. Any team that has paraded the imposing center has topped the association in that department, and that could very well entice the 76ers. Even better, he is good enough to incentivize the coaching staff to deploy Embiid less.
Capela is on a less expensive contract, although he is less effective than Adams. Still, he remains a rabid shot-blocker who can be impactful as a rim deterrent and lob threat. There is a lot of redundancy in skill between him and Adem Bona, but this is still a guy who has ample experience in the playoffs.
Either way, the Rockets are one of those teams which the 76ers should phone in on if they want to get all opportunistic. Alas, as long as the price is right, either Adams or Capela should be plenty attractive for them as under-the-radar trade targets.
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