Rotation Trust Level: Assessing the Sixers’ depth ahead of the NBA trade deadline

Feb 7, 2023 - 8:21 PM

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Amidst another year of chaos transpiring the week of the NBA trade deadline, the Sixers had themselves a pretty standard week. They picked up a couple wins against the Magic and Spurs before blowing yet another 21-point lead to the New York Knicks.

Twenty-five points from Tyrese Maxey led one of the bench’s best games as a unit in San Antonio, but a disastrous all-bench shift in New York sparked the Knicks’ comeback. With the Sixers’ core set in place, any move they make between now and Thursday’s deadline will be something around the margins. With that being said, how much trust do you have in the current Sixers’ rotation?

Matisse Thybulle

As is becoming a deadline tradition, Thybulle’s name has come up in a lot of rumors this week. As Liberty Ballers alum SixersAdam pointed out, packaging Thybulle with Danuel House Jr. and Furkan Korkmaz does create cap advantages.

House and Korkmaz are out of the rotation, but Thybulle still provides perimeter defense, something this team has proven they will need in the playoffs with how much it relies on Tyrese Maxey and James Harden.

During the Knicks loss, Doc Rivers deployed Thybulle and De’Anthony Melton at the same time, which has been a rarity this season. Per Cleaning the Glass, the two have only shared the court together for 114 possessions.

It wasn’t a lineup the Sixers stuck with long, as they struggled offensively during the final three quarters of that game. Thybulle’s viability on offense is the persistent variable to how useful an NBA player he is, but the prospect of throwing him and Melton on the wing together is enticing.

Shake Milton

As someone on an expiring contract, Milton’s name has come up here and there as someone who could be moved, but it is unlikely the Sixers find anything that would make it worth their while.

Milton struggled in New York, shooting just 1 of 5 from the field, but the entire offense struggled for much of that game. One benefit of the much-maligned all-bench lineups is that Milton’s chemistry has really blossomed with Maxey. The two Texas natives thrived against a shorthanded Spurs team Friday night.

Paul Reed

Everybody take a drink, it is time to talk about the backup centers once again. Games like Sunday’s loss to the Knicks, where Joel Embiid is a +18 and the Sixers lose by 11, are why Sixers fans go into a frenzy about who fills these 10-12 minutes on a nightly basis.

Reed got a cup of coffee in both Magic games, hardly enough time to make any kind of impact, and got some garbage time minutes in San Antonio.

After a horrendous three-minute stretch in which the Knicks made a 15-0 run, Reed was swapped with Montrezl Harrell. While Philly’s night did not get much better after that, his presence was a notable upgrade on the defensive end, as he consistently has been this season.

Perhaps the Sixers add another big, or maybe they don’t, but with Reed’s limitations as a young player, it’s hard to stomach him spending much of another regular season on the bench until he is called upon in the postseason. Perhaps Sunday’s game will be the start of another opportunity for Reed.

Montrezl Harrell

After seeing Harrell’s play this week, it isn’t a shock that Philly is rumored to be in the backup center market. This was capped off by the horrendous stretch against the Knicks that saw the minutes swing back to Reed. In fairness to Harrell, the reason why he is on this team is clear: he is a pick-and-roll big who has good chemistry with James Harden. With that being said, why does he hardly ever share the floor with Harden?????