Philadelphia 76ers: Good, better, best forwards on the free agent market

Best: Otto Porter

‘Whoa, whoa, whoa, shouldn’t this be P.J. Tucker’s spot? I mean, the Sixers were linked to him pretty heavily heading into the draft, and according to Marc Stein, that hasn’t changed. Why isn’t he the best option on this list?’

Easy: I don’t think P.J. Tucker will be in the Sixers’ price range.

Call me a cynic, call me unimaginative, call me vastly underestimating the trade market for Tobias Harris, but unless the Sixers do something truly bananas, getting the $12-ish million in available funds needed to unlock the full MLE probably isn’t going to happen.

What could happen – or should I say, is much more likely to happen – is that Otto Porter will ultimately be available in that $6 million, and the now-NBA champion will end up trading in his Golden State blues and yellows for Philadelphia red, white, and blue – which, funny enough, is the exact opposite trajectory of the actual Warriors franchise who left Philly for San Francisco in 1962.

As detailed in a more expansive piece here, Porter is the perfect target for the Sixers’ TMLE; he’s the right height, a good defender, an effective 3-point shooter both in terms of efficiency and attempts per game, and, at just 29-years-old, he’s not even a year older than Joel Embiid. If Porter is available, there should be no hesitations: He should be the Sixers’ TMLE signed.

Which forward would you like to see the Philadelphia 76ers sign this summer? Are you a big fan of Kyle Anderson? Let us know!