The Philadelphia 76ers made their move at the deadline when they acquired George Hill from the Oklahoma City Thunder. It is a move that can really help them get over the top in the East as he is a guy who has a ton of playoff experience under his belt.
The Sixers did not just acquire Hill in that deal, they also acquired young big man Iggy Brazdeikis from the New York Knicks.
Brazdeikis was a second-round pick of the Sacramento Kings in the 2019 NBA draft before being moved to the Knicks. He only played 13 games across two seasons in New York so he is a guy with very little experience, but he is excited for a new chapter in Philadelphia.
“It’s been all kind of crazy,” he said on Saturday. “Everything happened really fast. Biggest thing is I’m really excited to be here, grateful for this opportunity to be a part of this organization, this winning organization. Everyone’s been great so far, everything’s been smooth, getting workouts in and stuff just getting used to the whole place.”
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In those 13 games, Brazdeikis has averaged 1.5 points and he shot 35.7% from deep. As a freshman with the Michigan Wolverines in the 2018-19 season, he averaged 14.8 points and 5.4 rebounds while shooting 39.2% from deep and he earned a lot of postseason awards in the Big10.
He was able to get some workouts with the coaches in Philadelphia while the team was on the road for a few weeks.
“I’ve been working out while the team was on the road,” he explained. “Player development guys getting in the gym, getting the work in getting used to the facility, getting to know everybody, getting to know the fun office, and now the team came in today so getting to know the guys. It’s been a cool process so far.”
Brazdeikis is coming into a situation where the team is in the middle of a title chase and there are plenty of veterans ahead of him. He will have to work himself into the good graces of the coaching staff and just really learn the playbook and get everything down. He will have to learn from the others on the roster.
“Just to get established within the team,” he finished. “Nothing too specific with that, but just to learn as much as I can. Especially early on learn the offense, learn the defense, and just be an open book.”
The Sixers will take on the Minnesota Timberwolves on Saturday back at home.
This post originally appeared on Sixers Wire! Follow us on Facebook!
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