Philadelphia 76ers: Buyer beware on a trade for Terrence Ross

The Philadelphia 76ers need help on the wings.

With Danny Green out until at least February and Matisse Thybulle having never averaged 26 minutes per game over a full season, let alone into the 34-36 range typically required of a starter – plus, ya know, both could be traded before the start of the regular season – Franklin’s favorite franchise could need one or even multiple wings to fill out their depth chart.

Fortunately, there are a number of interesting options of all ages in all sorts of different price ranges who could fill that need, from vet minimum guys like Danuel House all the way up to Andrew Wiggins, who probably isn’t available but hey, who really knows.

Fortunately, there’s another player who fits that bill who is reportedly available now at a much smaller price than in the past: Terrence Ross. That’s right, after holding firm on the asking price of a first round pick for what feels like years now, the Orlando Magic have eased up and would accept multiple second round picks for Ross’ services.

Unfortunately, Ross just isn’t a fit on the Philadelphia 76ers’ roster as presently constructed, as he doesn’t do what the team needs well and is talented in areas that the team already has talent at.

Terrence Ross is a poor fit with the Philadelphia 76ers.

What is the ideal profile of a Philadelphia 76ers wing target? Well, for one thing, they need to be good on defense; the Sixers can’t afford to add a performer who will be steadily targeted on defense if they are going to play 30-plus minutes per game.

Two, they have to be very good 3-point shooters in terms of both efficiency and volume. Joel Embiid, Tyrese Maxey, and James Harden all need outlet passes on their way to the bucket, and having elite marksmen around the arc is the easiest way to unclog the paint.

And last but not least, the player in question needs to accept their role. They can’t take low-percentage shots, can’t waste the clock, and can’t freelance too much outside of the confines of the offense.

Terrence Ross, unfortunately, is 0-3 on those qualifications.

On defense, Ross is bad; he has only had one season with a positive Defensive Raptor rating since 2014-15, and in 2021-22, he had the fourth-lowest rating of any defender in the NBA regardless of minutes played. If Ross is on the court, teams are going to target him, and even Embiid’s presence in the painted area won’t clean that up.

Ross also isn’t a particularly good shooter from deep, as he’s never shot the 40 percent mark over the full NBA season and is a career 36.1 shooter from 3, which is right around the NBA average. If Ross is on the court, a team’s spacing is going to be alright, but that isn’t really his strength.

No Ross’ strength comes as a sixth man off the bench who operates with the ball in his hands and puts buckets on the board in a variety of different ways. In general, Ross is a pretty good mid-range scorer, but adding another player who wants to operate with the ball in their hands, especially when Tobias Harris also wants more on-ball opportunities, feels like a pretty questionable proposition from a team-building perspective, especially if it costs multiple second round picks and matching salary to make a deal work.

In 2018-19, the Philadelphia 76ers desperately needed a player like Terrence Ross. They needed a bench performer who could get his own shot and had enough size and defensive versatility to adequately cover up his poor on-ball abilities. But in 2022-23, where some combination of Tyrese Maxey, James Harden, or Joel Embiid will be on the court at all times, adding Ross is more of a negative than a positive, especially since he likely wouldn’t be content with the role he’d be assigned anyway.