Philadelphia 76ers: Cross Robert Covington off your offseason wishlist

The Philadelphia 76ers had two starting small forwards over the 2021-22 NBA season: Matisse Thybulle and Danny Green.
Both players have their strengths – Thybulle’s All-NBA defense, Green’s 3-and-D ability – their weaknesses – Thybulle’s offense, Green’s age – and frankly, neither is an ideal starter at the three spot for a Sixers team that no longer has a 6-foot-10 power forward running the point.
But what are the Sixers to do? Right now, nothing; this is the team Daryl Morey was able to cobble together and there’s just no way to fix what ails the team outside of Joel Embiid clearing concussion protocol.
Fast forward a few months into the future, however, and the world will be the Philadelphia 76ers’ oyster, well, within reason. They’ll be able to sign up a few players, trade for a few more, and maybe even strike gold in the draft, assuming the Brooklyn Nets choose to defer their first owed first round pick to 2023. There is, however, one player who won’t be available to Daryl Morey this summer now that he signed a new, massive contract; a player many a fan really wanted to see back in red, white, and blue.
No reunion for Robert Covington and the Philadelphia 76ers.
For the price of $24 million, Robert Covington has committed his services to the Los Angeles Clippers for the next two seasons, from 2022-24.
That number, while far from the high water mark four-year, $62 million contract he signed with the Philadelphia 76ers in 2017, is a solid return for a solid 3-and-D forward who may not be as effective on the defensive end of the court as he once was, but still finished out the year with 90 steals, 90 blocks, and a 3 point shooting percentage of 37.8 – a mark no other player matched in 2021-22 association-wide.
Now extended as a member of Doc Rivers’ former team, RoCo will likely start at one of the two forward spots, sandwiched between Paul Georges and Kawhi Leonard. He’ll benefit from playing alongside Reggie Jackson, whom he has meshed very well with so far this season, and hopefully not have to play too much center thanks to the presence of Ivica Zubac in the paint and Ty Lue on the bench instead of Daryl Morey’s dude, Mike D’Antoni.
And as for the Sixers? Well, they’ll need to find a new 3-and-D winger to place atop their proverbial wishlist, as RoCo won’t be going anywhere anytime soon.
But what should the Sixers be on the lookout for in their next small forward?
For one thing, the Sixers need size. They started off the 2021-22 season with one of the shortest starting fives in the association, and swapping out Seth Curry for James Harden only slightly alleviated that issue. Because Tobias Harris is a relatively small power forward at 6-foot-8, 226 pounds, the Sixers would be wise to find a similarly sized option at small forward who is a better regular season defender and – basketball gods willing – a plus rebounder, so Joel Embiid doesn’t have to fight for every rebound.
Additionally, the Sixers really don’t have a ton of plus shooters, as only two of their players, Tyrese Maxey and Georges Niang, finished out the regular season with a shooting percentage of 40 percent or higher.
The good news? There are a few players who fit that bill, including RoCo’s teammate – and Philly’s own – Marcus Morris, but securing his services will be costly, as seemingly every team in the NBA is looking for that exact type of player.
Sidebar: I mean hey, at $12 million per year, the Sixers couldn’t have afforded Covington’s contract anyway, but that’s neither here nor there.
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Will the Philadelphia 76ers ultimately make something work? I genuinely believe so, Daryl Morey was thrown a pretty nasty curveball last fall and was able to connect with it better than most, but for folks who were hoping to see a reunion between Joel Embiid and Robert Covington, and James Harden and Robert Covington, you’ll have to wait just a little bit longer, if it ever happens at all.