Roster Spots at a Premium as Summer League Winds Down

By Sean Kennedy (@PhillyFastBreak)

The Sixers play their last regularly scheduled summer league game today against the Knicks before entering the single elimination portion of the tournament, which means there are just a few more games (plus potentially training camp) for fringe guys to make a case for themselves on the roster. Over the past couple years, fans have grown accustomed to the Sixers being this fluid entity where whole hordes of players come and go on 10-day contracts, but right now, that doesn’t project to be the case. The trade with the Kings that brought in Nik Stauskas, Jason Thompson, and Carl Landry means there are less 3 roster spots available. Right now, each component of the 15-man roster is basically earmarked for someone; let’s take a look:

Guaranteed Contracts (9): Jason Thompson; Carl Landry; Joel Embiid (sigh); Jahlil Okafor; Nerlens Noel; Nik Stauskas; Furkan Aldemir; Tony Wroten; Jerami Grant

Non/Partially-Guaranteed Contracts (5): Robert Covington; Isaiah Canaan (fully guaranteed if not released before tomorrow, 7/15); Hollis Thompson; JaKarr Sampson: T.J. McConnell (full terms not disclosed but McConnell will reportedly receive a ‘six-figure amount‘ even if he doesn’t make the team)

You would also expect to team to reserve a roster space for unsigned 2nd-round pick Richaun Holmes, who excelled in the Utah Summer League before fracturing his elbow in the final game. If you’re doing the math at home, those names account for the full 15 spots available on the roster.

Now, there’s certainly some room for maneuvering, as the Sixers have cut ties with players with guaranteed contracts in the past. However, of the first group, only Aldemir would have been a potential candidate in my mind, but he showed enough progress with his outside shot in Utah that I think the team still wants to see if there’s room for him to grow. From the second group, Isaiah Canaan might have been a guy to go, but with the uncertainty around Tony Wroten’s return from the ACL injury, Canaan is probably locked in. All of that leaves the 2 spots currently taken by McConnell (who would be a relatively inexpensive cut and seemingly the first to go) and potentially Holmes as the only ones up for grabs.

Players like McConnell, Pierre Jackson and Jordan McRae are going to have to ramp things up to prove themselves worthy of those spots over the next few games. Then, there are guys like Scottie Wilbekin (who scored 19 points on 4-8 shooting from three last game against Boston), who are basically playing for an audition somewhere else in the league. Unlike years past, we basically have an idea what the Sixers roster will look like come the fall; the last couple spots should see a fierce battle play out, continuing today against New York.