Who should they pick up?

    I will spare everyone the excuses of my month-long hiatus, and just get into the post.

    After another disappointing playoff exit, the Sixers need to make some changes-fast. The Sixers have two options: capitalize in the draft or free agency. 

    Tyrese Maxey's rise and Joel Embiid's domination make Philadelphia an ideal destination for many NBA stars. And getting established players us a lot safer of a route for Philadelphia. Hopefully Kelly Oubre, Nico Batum, and Kyke Lowry all decide to stick around. The three role players were clutch when Embiid went down. 

    Obviously the team needs another player to pair with Maxey when Embiid's out. Embiid's torn meniscus wasn't his first major injury, and won't be his last. The team does not need LeBron James. I repeat...does not. I'm so confused why the fans are interested in signing him. His is, without a doubt, one of the three greatest basketball players of all time.  However, the Sixers don't need to add the face of the league to be a great team. Having three major stars on the same team isn't a recipe for success. The teams that do succeed with Big 3's such as the 2024 Celtics, 2016 Warriors, and 2012 Heat have extreme depth, to the point where the bench is good as opponents starters. Or, in the case of the Heat, LeBron James in his prime with a decent bench. 

    Rebounding is always a reliable scapegoat, and was a brutal Achilles heel against New York. When Embiid is off the floor, they need someone capable of crashing the boards. They also need good wing defenders as New York's three pointers were devastating the entire year. Bringing in Alex Caruso is my best bet. Tobias Harris will get booted. He was supposed to take control of the Sixers when Embiid went down midseason and backed down quickly. Sixers fans hate him. I wanted to believe in him, have faith, hopefully he'll turn around and get better, but he didn't. In Game 6 against New York the man scored zero points, attempting only two field goals. He got four rebounds and had three assists but that was literally it. Chicago will probably be looking for something new, as the DeMar DeRozan-Zach Lavine-Nikola Vucevic thing is obviously not working out. So... the Sixers bring in Caruso and give up their second round pick and Tobias Harris. Caruso is the defensive role player the Sixers need. Another option is targeting the Nets. Mikal Bridges is foward with a lot of potential. Scoring nearly 20 points, grabbing 4.5 boards and and earning a steal per game makes Bridges an interesting idea. Other popular proposals are Jimmy Butler, O.G. Anunoby, and Brandon Ingram. However, trading for a forward isn't a must, as the Sixers have been linked to Colorado's forward Tristan da Silva in this year's draft. 

Photo Credit: Sports Illustrated

    However, Paul George is the player the Sixers have been linked to the most, and I must say, I hate the idea. Paul George undoubtedly an elite shooter, but he is a flaky playoff performer. He averaged 22.6 points per game during the season shooting 41.3% from three. These are excellent stats. But in Games 5 and 6 against Dallas, when his team needed him most, he couldn't deliver. In Game 5 he played 33 minutes shooting 33.3% percent behind the arc and scoring 15 en route to a 30 point blowout loss at home. That's 7.6 points and 8% less than his averages. In Game six he scored 18 points and shot 20% from three. Thats 3.6 points and 21.3% less than his averages. Not that 15 points is horrible, but star players should heat up come playoff time, not cool off. Philly needs someone to cook in the playoffs, and PG-13, despite having an epic nickname and good regular season stats, isn't the guy.

    The Sixers have only so many years left with Embiid, we say that every year. Everything seems right, except for one missing thing: that one defensive player. This offseason is crucial to get things right and make another playoff charge this upcoming season.

The above photo was taken from a Sports Illustrated article. Photo taken by Jerome Miron-USA TODAY Sports. Image used for Commentary.