Adem Bona may have taken a real step toward cementing the 76ers’ backup center role with the kind of performance that fits exactly what Philadelphia needs behind Joel Embiid.
With Embiid sitting out the second night of a back-to-back, Bona was handed extended minutes and made the most of them. The third-year big man logged 25 minutes and finished with six points, 13 rebounds and three blocks. Philadelphia still took its first loss of the season, but Bona’s night stood out as the clearest positive to come out of it.
That matters because the 76ers have not exactly had a crowded, healthy competition for the job. Ariel Hukporti is done for the season with an Achilles injury, while Dominick Barlow and Tacko Fall have yet to play for the team because of injuries. That leaves Bona in a spot where the opportunity is there, and the path to the role is pretty direct.
He brings the kind of traits the 76ers want in that spot: work on the glass, rim protection and a live body for lobs. He is also the most prolific shot-blocker on the roster.
The issues are still there, though. His positioning can drift, and the fouls can pile up.
Even so, the package is good enough to make him a legitimate defensive anchor for the second unit if he keeps showing it.
This is not exactly a surprise development. The coaching staff has already shown a willingness to use him there.
Last season, Nick Nurse had Bona in that backup center role for a sizable stretch before turning back to Andre Drummond late in the year. With Drummond now gone, the job naturally falls back to Bona.
The 76ers do not need him to be anything flashy. If he keeps bringing energy, defense and rebounding in whatever minutes he gets, the staff will keep leaning on him. Right now, compared with the other big men on the roster, he already has the inside track.
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Philadelphia has survived so far on defense and timely plays late, but that formula gets a lot harder to sustain if the reserves do not start carrying more of the load. Simons was brought in to help stabilize that part of the rotation, and his scoring touch is now at the center of whether the 76ers can keep their early success from turning into a more familiar kind of problem. [Read more 🡒]