Sixers’ Jonah Bolden having similar start to career as Richaun Holmes

The story of the summer league has been about two of the Sixers’ 2017 picks, but the second-round underdog is stealing the spotlight.

Markelle Fultz will get the cameras, but Jonah Bolden is the player that is fighting for a roster spot. The Sixers are enjoying the successes of the two 2017 picks currently showing out in Utah. Fultz has put up 40 points over two games, and is showing star potential early on against lesser competition. But they should be ecstatic about the rise of Bolden.

The second-rounder is proving to be as fun as advertised. His high energy on defense has given the summer Sixers multiple highlight blocks, and his ability to stretch the floor is proving to be a useful aspect of his game. His summer league rise is starting to have many wondering if he can earn a spot on the roster this season.

Through two summer league games, he’s averaging 7.0 points, 4.0 rebounds, 1.5 steals, and 3.5 blocks. He’s a willing shooter, and if he can find consistency in his shot selection, he could prove to be an immediate force off the bench. The problem is, there is a full roster and a roadblock of a front-court in his way. Ben Simmons, Dario Saric, Amir Johnson, Joel Embiid, and Richaun Holmes are all going to take up minutes at possibly both front court positions. And that’s excluding the polarizing figure that is Jahlil Okafor.

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Is there enough room on the roster for Bolden, who could be a Jordan McRae-esque stash? It’s the same question Richaun Holmes had to answer to a point in his first summer league stint. Holmes was coming in as a second-round pick in the same draft as the top-three pick in Okafor, and was set to battle him, Nerlens Noel, and Joel Embiid for minutes.

His strong summer league performance, which like Bolden was based off his energy on both ends, is what lead him to a roster spot. And the re-injury of Embiid’s foot of course played a big factor. Holmes placed himself in a position where the Sixers would feel comfortable to plug him in, in the case of an injury. Bolden is doing the same, two years later.

Bolden has potential to play both front court positions, maybe even more effectively at the four than we have seen Holmes play. The versatility could work to his advantage. The problem is, the Sixers would have to open up a roster spot, unless Philadelphia is trying to use one of their two-way contract spots and keep him in the G-League for some time.

Bolden has proven his athleticism is NBA-ready, and while the Sixers are going through a turn in the rebuild, his NBA days could be slightly halted. That’s not to say we won’t see the springy Bolden in a Sixers uniform this season, but don’t expect him to be a regular piece in the first half of the year.

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The Sixers have seemed to uncover a surprise prospect in the second-round, and if his development and success carries throughout the summer and the G-League, Bolden could be on track to becoming a rotation players. Much like Holmes, who for much of last year was the team’s second-best center, Jonah Bolden has the type of game that will land him a home somewhere in this league.