The 76ers’ frontcourt problems just got worse before the season even really started.
Backup center Ariel Hukporti tore his Achilles in Philadelphia’s first preseason game, a brutal hit that ends his season and leaves the team even thinner behind Joel Embiid. That was already the soft spot in the roster. Now it looks exposed.
What’s left is a shaky mix of Adem Bona, a third-year second-round pick with career averages of 5.3 points and 4.3 rebounds per game, Dominick Barlow, a fifth-year 6’9” journeyman who has played almost as much small forward as center, and Jabari Walker, who logged under 12 minutes a game for Philly last season. It’s fair to wonder whether any of them is really an NBA rotation player, but Philadelphia may not have the luxury of waiting to find out.
That’s because Embiid hasn’t played 40 games in a season since 2022-23, and even if he holds up better this year, the Sixers are going to manage his minutes closely. On Wednesday, Nick Nurse told reporters the team may even have to use Dean Wade and LeBron James as small-ball center options.
Both can defend. Neither is a natural center.
And the margin for error is tiny. Philly is working with almost no room under its first apron hard cap, so this isn’t a situation where the front office can easily go shopping for help. The Sixers are stuck trying to patch together a front line and make it work.
That’s exactly the kind of opening teams like the Celtics will try to hammer. Boston can bring size and force with Neemias Queta and Mitchell Robinson, two players described here as giant, athletic, strong, and relentless. Against a Philadelphia group this short on true center play, the plan is obvious: attack the paint, own the boards, and keep pressing until the Sixers crack.
The concern goes beyond one matchup. Without real size down low, Philadelphia looks vulnerable every night.
The team could get pushed around on the glass, have no clear path to protecting the rim, and end up asking too much of players who are already stretched thin. Smart opponents will see the same thing and keep coming at it.
For a team trying to build something real, that’s a dangerous place to be. On paper, the Sixers’ center situation looks thin enough to become a season-long problem.
In Other News...
Jayson Tatum Sees One Immediate Difference With Celtics Big Man
Mitchell Robinson is already giving the Celtics something they have long valued in the frontcourt, and Jayson Tatum noticed the difference quickly. After signing a three-year contract with Boston, Robinson brings a reputation for defensive disruption, physical rebounding and the kind of interior presence that can change how opponents attack the rim.
Tatum pointed to Robinson's defensive skills, his work on the glass and the broader impact he can have on the group, which fits neatly with what Boston has wanted from its big men. Robinson has built his name as one of the league's better offensive rebounders, and the Celtics will be counting on that edge to show up every night, especially once the games start to tighten and the margin for error gets smaller. [Read more 🡒]
Jayson Tatum Already Sounds Comfortable With A New Celtics Frontcourt Fit
Bostons final training camp practice in Charleston, South Carolina, offered a first real glimpse of how Jayson Tatum is beginning to mesh with a new frontcourt partner. With the season inching closer, Tatum spent some time discussing Mitchell Robinson and the way the Celtics can lean into his defensive presence, rebounding and screening to make the half-court offense and the overall lineup structure feel more natural.
For Tatum, the fit appears to be about more than just rim protection. He sounded comfortable with the idea of Robinson helping set the tone on both ends, and that matters for a team trying to sort out its rotations and maximize the forwards and centers around him. The early read is encouraging, even if the real test will come once the Celtics start facing live pressure and have to turn those camp impressions into something repeatable. [Read more 🡒]
Celtics Are Suddenly Linked To A Knicks Move Fans Didn't Expect
The Celtics already made one notable Knicks-related splash this offseason by bringing in center Mitchell Robinson, and now their front office is being tied to another big name from New York. This time it is Karl-Anthony Towns, whose contract situation has quietly become a talking point around the league as Boston looks for ways to keep stacking talent around its core.
A Towns deal would not be simple and it would not come cheap, but the fit is easy to understand for a team that values spacing, size and versatility. The possibility only exists if contract talks in New York go sideways, which remains a long shot given the Knicks recent championship, but the mere mention of Boston in that conversation is enough to make the idea worth watching. [Read more 🡒]