Guerschon Yabusele’s exit from the NBA wound up looking a lot less painful for the Sixers than it did when he first left Philadelphia.
What seemed like a gut punch last summer - Yabusele leaving on a two-year, $12 million deal with the Knicks - never really turned into the nightmare many in Philadelphia might have feared. He played just 8.9 minutes per game across 41 games in New York before being moved to Chicago, and now he’s headed back overseas after agreeing to a three-year deal with Panathinaikos.
The twist is that Yabusele technically had a hand in helping New York, too. He gave up his $5.8 million player option for the 2026-27 season, a move that opened the door for the Knicks to trade him to Chicago. That decision also made the Jose Alvarado trade possible.
That kind of selflessness fits the image Yabusele built in Philadelphia. His return to the NBA after his play at the 2024 Olympics made him an easy player to root for, and he quickly became a fan favorite before the story ran its course.
Free agent forward Guerschon Yabusele has agreed to a three-year deal with Panathinaikos, league sources told @hoopshype. Yabusele will be one of the top three highest-paid European players. He's averaged 8.3 points over the past two NBA seasons with the 76ers, Bulls and Knicks. pic.twitter.com/UjfAxXy5S0
- Michael Scotto (@MikeAScotto) July 8, 2026
For Yabusele, Panathinaikos gives him a chance to get back to being a top EuroLeague player after a rough NBA season. When he waived his player option in February, he said he "wanted to play basketball at the end of the day." That’s exactly what he’ll do now.
The Sixers can at least take some comfort in how this played out. They didn’t have to watch Yabusele become a lasting problem in New York, even if it was hard to pull against him there, too. And after all the frustration Philadelphia has dealt with over the years, that matters.
His departure also arrives with another familiar wrinkle for the Sixers. Andre Drummond is the latest former Philadelphia center to head to New York in free agency, signing with the Knicks as their new backup center after Mitchell Robinson signed with the Celtics.
The Sixers will be hoping that move doesn’t fizzle the way Yabusele’s Knicks stint did. At least they have Ariel Hukporti now.
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