Offseason Primer: Philadelphia 76ers
The 76ers could look significantly different at the start of the 2024-25 season
Current Roster Outlook (*Excluding two-way contracts*)
Cap Outlook: (*All cap projections courtesy of Spotrac*)
2024-2025 NBA Salary Cap Projection: $141M
Luxury Tax Line: $171M
Luxury Tax 1st Apron Maximum: $178M
Luxury Tax 2nd Apron Maximum: $189M
Philadelphia’s Total Cap Allocations (Active Roster Salary Commitments + Cap Holds): $246M
Practical Cap Space: $55M
Maximum Possible Cap Space (All options declined, cap holds renounced and exceptions waived): $72M
Possible Financial Avenues:
When Sixers Team President Daryl Morey decided against signing James Harden to a long-term extension last summer, it was because he had the summer of 2024 in mind. The only guaranteed contract currently on Philadelphia’s books for ‘24-25 is Joel Embiid’s $54M, and the only player not currently under contract that the Sixers are guaranteed to retain is restricted free agent Tyrese Maxey. By waiting until after they utilize their cap space to re-sign Maxey, they can use his low cap hold ($13M) as a placeholder, maximizing their spending power. Philly also has ~$9.5M tied up in non-guaranteed contracts for Paul Reed and Ricky Council IV, and while both players could be useful, the possibility of losing one or both is not going to prevent the Sixers from acquiring star-level talent.
Bottom Line:
The 76ers can realistically open up as much as $55-60M worth of cap space this summer, giving them more than enough room to sign a max-level free agent, or acquire one via trade without forcing the other team to take back any salary.
Organizational Direction:
With Joel Embiid entering his age-30 season, the 76ers are unquestionably in a win-now phase. Getting Embiid to and through the postseason fully healthy has been a challenge in and of itself, but the last several seasons have also proven that Philadelphia doesn’t have a championship-worthy supporting cast, regardless of the big man’s injury status. The 76ers have a finite window to strike in the Eastern conference, and they need to act urgently and aggressively to upgrade their roster around their star duo of Embiid and Tyrese Maxey.
Offseason Checklist:
1) Utilize their available spending power
There’s no question that Philadelphia is going to be actively acquiring players this summer, as otherwise they wouldn’t be able to field a team. The real question is what the structure of those acquisitions will be. Daryl Morey’s history as a team-builder tells us that he will be chasing stars, and the star who currently seems most likely to change teams this summer is Paul George. George is an ideal fit on the wing in between Maxey and Embiid, and Philly could offer him as much as 4 years and $212 million. If George ultimately decides to stay in LA or sign elsewhere, the Sixers could turn to the trade market, as they would be able to absorb a player like Jimmy Butler or Brandon Ingram, while offering their trade partner significant salary relief.
If Philly completely strikes out on a third star, they could split their cap space among multiple players. By offering short-term deals with bloated average annual values to top-tier support pieces like Kentavious Caldwell-Pope and Derrick Jones Jr., Philly could massively upgrade their depth as opposed to building a big three of stars. There’s a real argument to be made that this should be their plan A, as avoiding a third maximum-salary contract would also make it easier to retain key pieces from their ‘23-24 team. Either way, Philadelphia needs to come away from this offseason with a definitively better team than they ended last season, and they should have every opportunity to do just that.
2) Re-Sign Tyrese Maxey in restricted free agency
After his breakout season in ‘23-24, there’s little question that Tyrese Maxey will command his maximum salary from the Sixers this summer. Philadelphia will be more than happy to lock in their 24-year old point guard at 25% of the salary cap, so the only real question is going to be what form Maxey’s new contract will take. While the Sixers would likely prefer to sign Maxey for five seasons, which is the longest possible deal they could give him, he may agitate for a player option in the final season. Philly already asked Maxey to absorb some risk last summer, when they opted not to give him an extension as soon as he became eligible on his rookie deal, in order to preserve cap space this summer. Most likely, there’s a handshake agreement between the two sides that Maxey will receive whatever he prefers as a result of his willingness to work with the team, so I wouldn’t be surprised to see all the player-friendly bells and whistles included in this new deal.
3) Find the right mix of support pieces to fill out the roster
Assuming that Philadelphia does find a way to add a high-priced veteran like George or Butler on the wing, they would have one of the most talented trios in the league. However, we’ve seen in recent seasons that pure star power alone is not enough to guarantee a championship, particularly when health and age are as big a factor as they would be in Philly. Using the first year of a theoretical George contract (~$48M) as a placeholder, the Sixers would have limited funds remaining to fill out the rest of the roster, and they would still need two additional viable members of a closing lineup. While the Sixers would have almost no need for supplemental shot creation, they would still require multiple players capable of shooting and defending at at least an adequate level, which is not always the easiest feat. Hitting home runs on a couple minimum-contract signings could end up being the difference between a championship or a first-round flameout. Luckily for Philadelphia, they would be able to offer a big market and a winning team, which has typically been a solid recipe for getting players to sign on, even if it means taking slightly less money than they might make elsewhere.