- Joined
- May 8, 2002
- Posts
- 1,256,627
- Reaction score
- 59
Following four-time MVP LeBron James' historic decision to shock the world by joining the Philadelphia 76ers, the news was met with elation by those in the City of Brotherly Love, including Pennsylvania governor Josh Shapiro, who already officially declared July 24 to be known as LeBron James Day in the state.
And the elation in Philadelphia is more than justified, as the 76ers now have as good a chance as anyone of taking home the 2026-27 NBA championship, with James set to be signed to one of the best value contracts in league history. Lest we forget, although James is now 41, he still put up a 21/7/6 stat line last season while having to share the ball with the likes of Luka Doncic and Austin Reaves.
James will now be signed to a deal that will pay him just $3.9 million next campaign, so we're having a hard time figuring out a player who might give their team a better bang for their buck than James will for Philadelphia next season at that salary.
And that was without even discussing the fact that Philadelphia also managed to get rid of Paul George this offseason, while adding Jaylen Brown and Anfernee Simons. Simply put, the Sixers are going to be an absolute force, at least on the offensive end, next season, and should be seen by everyone as a top title contender.
However, there is some business the team still has to take care of.
Because the 76ers would be over the $209 million first apron hard cap after signing James, they need to waive a player before making the signing official, even though they have an open roster spot.
That means Philadelphia will have a decision to make soon.
The players at the most risk of being waived by Philadelphia are its young players on contracts that aren't fully guaranteed: fifth-year forwards Dalen Terry, whose salary carries no guarantee, and Jabari Walker, who has a $250,000 partial guarantee. Big man Adem Bona, 23, faced the same risk ahead of Philadelphia's July 7 deadline to lock in his money, but the team guaranteed the contract and secured his roster spot.
Terry has been in the NBA for four seasons, averaging 3.5 points and 1.7 rebounds over 218 appearances in the Association. He did see action in seven games in last year's postseason for Philadelphia, but that was mostly in mop-up duty. Walker, meanwhile, has likewise been in the league for four years, averaging 5.7 points and 4.1 rebounds over 252 appearances. Over his last two seasons, the energetic Walker has shot 35.9 percent from three, so the soon-to-be-24-year-old does appear to have some potential as a 3-and-D role player in a 6-foot-7 package.
76ers head coach Nick Nurse has spoken highly of Walker in the past...
...leading us to think there's a possibility the brain trust in Philadelphia is high on him, and would rather keep him around as the team continues to develop him.
In Terry's case, Philadelphia was high enough on him that it chose to waive veteran floor general Cameron Payne late last season in order to convert the young Terry from a two-way deal to a standard NBA contract.
The decision the Sixers have to make won't be an easy one, as the team clearly had some level of hope in Terry or Walker developing into solid role players, but the fact that it means landing James on such a value deal will surely make it sting at least a little bit less.
This article originally appeared on Hoops Hype: Who's most at risk on Philadelphia's roster following the LeBron James decision
Continue reading...
And the elation in Philadelphia is more than justified, as the 76ers now have as good a chance as anyone of taking home the 2026-27 NBA championship, with James set to be signed to one of the best value contracts in league history. Lest we forget, although James is now 41, he still put up a 21/7/6 stat line last season while having to share the ball with the likes of Luka Doncic and Austin Reaves.
James will now be signed to a deal that will pay him just $3.9 million next campaign, so we're having a hard time figuring out a player who might give their team a better bang for their buck than James will for Philadelphia next season at that salary.
And that was without even discussing the fact that Philadelphia also managed to get rid of Paul George this offseason, while adding Jaylen Brown and Anfernee Simons. Simply put, the Sixers are going to be an absolute force, at least on the offensive end, next season, and should be seen by everyone as a top title contender.
However, there is some business the team still has to take care of.
Because the 76ers would be over the $209 million first apron hard cap after signing James, they need to waive a player before making the signing official, even though they have an open roster spot.
That means Philadelphia will have a decision to make soon.
The players at the most risk of being waived by Philadelphia are its young players on contracts that aren't fully guaranteed: fifth-year forwards Dalen Terry, whose salary carries no guarantee, and Jabari Walker, who has a $250,000 partial guarantee. Big man Adem Bona, 23, faced the same risk ahead of Philadelphia's July 7 deadline to lock in his money, but the team guaranteed the contract and secured his roster spot.
Terry has been in the NBA for four seasons, averaging 3.5 points and 1.7 rebounds over 218 appearances in the Association. He did see action in seven games in last year's postseason for Philadelphia, but that was mostly in mop-up duty. Walker, meanwhile, has likewise been in the league for four years, averaging 5.7 points and 4.1 rebounds over 252 appearances. Over his last two seasons, the energetic Walker has shot 35.9 percent from three, so the soon-to-be-24-year-old does appear to have some potential as a 3-and-D role player in a 6-foot-7 package.
76ers head coach Nick Nurse has spoken highly of Walker in the past...
...leading us to think there's a possibility the brain trust in Philadelphia is high on him, and would rather keep him around as the team continues to develop him.
In Terry's case, Philadelphia was high enough on him that it chose to waive veteran floor general Cameron Payne late last season in order to convert the young Terry from a two-way deal to a standard NBA contract.
The decision the Sixers have to make won't be an easy one, as the team clearly had some level of hope in Terry or Walker developing into solid role players, but the fact that it means landing James on such a value deal will surely make it sting at least a little bit less.
This article originally appeared on Hoops Hype: Who's most at risk on Philadelphia's roster following the LeBron James decision
Continue reading...
