The Philadelphia 76ers are happy with their current direction and apparently think superstar free agents will feel the same way.
According to Philly Voice’s Kyle Neubeck, the team isn’t thinking twice about their decision to decline Jahlil Okafor’s fourth-year option because it has set sights on reeling in bigger fish over the summer:
For the Sixers, it’s a move made with a clear eye toward the future. Multiple members of the organization insisted privately that cap flexibility next summer is a major priority for the team, and they are hopeful they can bring max-level players to the negotiation table. With Joel Embiid’s big raise set to kick in next summer and Robert Covington likely on the verge of signing an extension, Bryan Colangelo and his staff need to find ways to free up money elsewhere.
Declining Okafor’s option is part of that broader plan, per a team source. The organization will free up just under $6.5 million by declining Okafor’s option, making him an unrestricted free agent next summer.
As ESPN.com’s Bobby Marks noted, the Sixers now project to have $39 million in cap space after ditching Okafor’s hold. That number could drop if they still trade him and take on salary in return, and it’s sure to fall once they hammer out an expected extension with Robert Covington.
Still, the Sixers, as currently constructed, have a relatively clear path to max cap space.
Let’s say they give Covington a starting salary of around $14 million for next season. Let’s also allocate another $5 million to first-round picks, a number that could go down depending on where the Los Angeles Lakers selection falls, and how their obligations with the Boston Celtics shake out.
Bake all that in, and the Sixers will still generate about $21.9 million in space, against a $101 million cap, after renouncing all their own free agents. Find a new home for Jerryd Bayless’ expiring deal, without taking back money in return, and that number will creep above $30 million. That isn’t technically enough to sign LeBron James, but it gets them in the door with the biggest names, since they have the ability to shed salary elsewhere. And again, they could be in an even more flexible situation depending on how the Covington extension plays out.
Whether this flexibility will be parlayed into a star signing remains to be seen. But it sure seems like the Sixers will have both the resources and external clout to wedge their way into the most relevant conversations.
