The Philadelphia 76ers still have decisions to make around the edges, and the free-agent board has already started to sort itself into two clear buckets: the names worth kicking around, and the ones the Sixers can safely leave alone.
ESPN’s list of the top six unrestricted free agents this week was made up entirely of “win-now” pieces, which makes the exercise useful for a contender like Philadelphia. The Sixers don’t currently have room to add their 15th man, but that could change if they move on from a cut candidate or wait until December, when they can begin planning their next signing.
The most obvious place to look is center. That has been the weak spot for weeks, and it is hard to ignore the reality behind Joel Embiid.
As dominant as he is, 40 games feels like the ceiling at this point in his career. Behind him, the depth chart gets shaky fast with Adem Bona and Ariel Hukporti.
Kevin Love has already made himself a possible fit. ESPN’s Dave McMenamin reported that the veteran’s agent has "been in touch" with the Sixers’ front office, a detail that makes sense with LeBron James now in Philadelphia.
Love may not be the best big man available when you combine free agency and the trade market, but among the names floating around, he is the one who actually matches the Sixers’ biggest need. He is not a Plan A, but he belongs on the list.
Bradley Beal is another name that at least makes you stop and think. There was a time when his contract made him untouchable in most conversations.
That is not the case anymore. He took $5.3 million from the Los Angeles Clippers last season and was derailed by a season-ending injury early in the year, which changes the equation.
In his last full season, he put up 17.0 points, 3.7 assists, and 3.3 rebounds across 53 games, with 38 starts, while shooting 38.6% from three. The Sixers have shown interest in him before, and Joel Embiid has a solid relationship with him.
If Beal is still out there in a few months, and Labaron Philon Jr. does not look ready, and Anfernee Simons can be used as trade leverage to improve the frontcourt, then Beal becomes a name worth revisiting.
The rest of the list is easier to sort through, and mostly easier to pass on.
Jonathan Kuminga is still one of the league’s more divisive young players, but that does not make him a Sixers problem. There are still questions about how much of his situation is about coaching, how much is about his own game, and whether he is simply not the right fit for the kind of deal he wants. Either way, Philadelphia does not need to step into that debate.
James Harden remains on the market, though he is expected to return to the Cleveland Cavaliers. A reunion with the Sixers would have only made sense under very specific conditions: a team-friendly deal, a return to the six-man role, a full-circle kind of ending.
That is not where this is headed. Harden wants more than the minimum and still wants to start, which takes him out of the picture for Philadelphia.
The two former Sacramento Kings, DeMar DeRozan and Russell Westbrook, fall into the same category: recognizable names, but not the kind that should force the Sixers into action. DeRozan was solid in Chicago, but the Bulls were not good.
He was decent in Sacramento, but the Kings were terrible. Westbrook may still have some believers, and there is at least a little more optimism around him than around most players at this stage of his career, but the fit is still murky.
If Philadelphia ever needed a veteran ball-handler because Philon was struggling, maybe the conversation changes. But by then, Westbrook would likely be off the board anyway.
In Other News...
Sixers Face One Cap Problem In Pursuit Of Kevin Love
Kevin Loves next stop may have less to do with fit on the floor than timing on the ledger. According to ESPNs Dave McMenamin, the veteran has interest in joining the 76ers, and his agent has already been in contact with the team. For Philadelphia, the appeal is obvious: Love would bring another experienced frontcourt body to a roster that could use one, and the Sixers have at least kept the door open by staying in the conversation.
The problem is the cap sheet, which leaves Philadelphia unable to make the move right away. The team could create the needed space once the season starts or through a trade, but for now it is a waiting game with a fairly narrow path to a deal. Loves future in Philadelphia will depend on how the roster and finances shake out, and that means this is one of those situations that could move quickly or linger for a while. [Read more 🡒]
Labaron Philon Faces An Early Sixers Test He Didn't Expect
Labaron Philon Jr. arrives at 76ers training camp with the kind of opportunity every first-round pick wants, but not quite the one he may have pictured on draft night. The No. 22 selection in the 2026 NBA Draft is walking into a veteran-heavy locker room, and Philadelphias offseason additions have already crowded the backcourt picture in a way that makes his early path less straightforward.
Philon has handled the situation with the right kind of patience, appreciating the chance to learn around established players while still pushing to earn a rotation spot. For now, the cleanest opening for him looks like backup ball-handling duties, but even that role is far from settled as the Sixers sort through a reshaped roster and decide how much runway to give a rookie trying to carve out minutes. [Read more 🡒]