Sixers offer up hope for Paul Reed, Charles Bassey to be backup options

The Philadelphia 76ers offer up hope that Paul Reed and Charles Bassey will be the backup big man options.

CAMDEN, N.J. — The Philadelphia 76ers still have needs to address during this offseason despite acquiring a much-needed backup point guard, De’Anthony Melton.

The Sixers still need help on the wings and they need to address the backup center spot. Will they go out in free agency to grab a veteran or will they turn their attention to Paul Reed and Charles Bassey and give them a chance back up Joel Embiid?

The Sixers turned to DeAndre Jordan a lot during the regular season, but in the playoffs, the backup minutes went to Reed, who brings a ton of energy every time he steps on the floor. Bassey was productive in short spurts and also had success in the G League.

“I know coach (Doc) Rivers is very excited with what Paul Reed gave us down the stretch,” said president Daryl Morey on Thursday. “Generally, guys really don’t contribute much in their first year, but Bassey was a G League (runner-up) with the Belue Coats, and, I think the hope is, it’s a long shot on a great, winning team like ours, but the hope is that Bassey could contribute at some point this year.”

It’s very easy for the Sixers to go out in free agency and sign somebody just as they did in 2021 when they brought in Andre Drummond. However, Morey and the front office believe they can turn to Reed and Bassey and feel comfortable.

“Paul, hopefully, build on what he did at the end of last year,” Morey added. “We’re gonna be opportunistic with a bigger spend in free agency, there will be opportunities to look at minimum spends, but I think the bar will be high on a minimum spend at the backup center spot because we feel like we got some guys who can contribute.”

This post originally appeared on Sixers Wire! Follow us on Facebook!

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