Tag: Jalen McDaniels

Jalen McDaniels reveals why he left Sixers to join Raptors in free agency

Jalen McDaniels reveals why he left the Philadelphia 76ers to join the Toronto Raptors early in free agency.

TORONTO–The Philadelphia 76ers made a big move at the 2023 deadline when they sent Matisse Thybulle to the Portland Trail Blazers in a 4-team deal that saw the Sixers acquire Jalen McDaniels from the Charlotte Hornets.

In 24 games with the Sixers, including three starts, McDaniels averaged 6.7 points and 3.2 rebounds while shooting 40% from deep albeit on only 1.3 attempts per game. He showed why the Sixers went after him with his ability to play on both ends of the floor.

The idea for the Sixers acquiring McDaniels was to utilize that ability in the postseason. However, he played sparingly in Round 2 against the Boston Celtics. He did not play at all in Games 4, 5, and 7 and he only played only 36 seconds in Game 6 of that series.

In free agency, McDaniels bolted for the Toronto Raptors securing a 2-year $9.2 million deal. It was a little surprising to see him leave, but he explained his decision on Saturday before his Raptors took on the Sixers.

“I don’t even know what happened,” said McDaniels. “I thought I was (coming back to the Sixers). I guess it was a better opportunity. A team wanted me, gave me money, stuff like that I guess you could say, so I had to take it.”

Along with the basketball stuff, it appears that his decision to join Toronto was something of a business decision. He did not like the offer the Sixers gave him.

“It was just like a minimum-type thing,” he said. “Yeah, I couldn’t do that, you know?”

Despite the short time in Philadelphia, McDaniels described his time with the Sixers as fun. He was able to learn from superstars like Joel Embiid and James Harden and got to experience the postseason for the first time in his career.

“It was a fun time, you know?” he reminisced. “Being on the court with superstars and stuff like that, it was just a whole different vibe. I learned a lot from those guys. It was just different. I liked it a lot. It was cool, you feel me? When I seen everybody today, it was normal like ‘How y’all doing?’ For me, it was all love. So it was cool.”

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Sixers free agent Jalen McDaniels beginning summer work with his trainer

Philadelphia 76ers free agent Jalen McDaniels is back in the gym with his trainer preparing for summer work.

The summer is officially here for the Philadelphia 76ers, and players are getting in the gym to begin summer work in preparation for the 2023-24 season.

One player back in the gym is free agent Jalen McDaniels. The Sixers acquired McDaniels from the Charlotte Hornets at the deadline and the springy forward out of San Diego State provided some really nice moments off the bench.

McDaniels’ trainer, Clint Parks, posted a picture on his Instagram of the two of them back in the gym preparing for a summer of work. McDaniels shot 12-for-30 from deep in 24 games for Philadelphia after the trade, good for 40%, but he shot just 3-for-9 from deep in the postseason. The 3-point shot is likely something he will continue to work on.

https://www.instagram.com/p/CtKs78OvViV/

On Parks’ Instagram story, he posted a video of McDaniels working on his ballhandling. He wants his pupil to expand his skills.

There will be plenty of suitors for McDaniels in free agency considering he is an athletic two-way player. It will be interesting to see what happens with him.

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HoopsHype ranks Sixers, other NBA free agents for 2023 offseason

HoopsHype put together a ranking of the top free agents for the 2023 offseason which includes the Philadelphia 76ers free agents.

2023 free agency in the NBA begins on June 30, which is right around the corner. Teams are preparing to begin negotiating during the summer frenzy.

The Philadelphia 76ers will be no different. While they’re spending power in free agency is limited, the Sixers will be looking to at least keep some of their free agents in tow (i.e. James Harden).

HoopsHype put together a complete ranking of all 223 free agents in the upcoming class and that includes Philadelphia’s. The following will be the Sixers’ rankings on the list. The number next to their name is where they placed:

Stay or go: Predicting what Sixers will do with their 2023 free agents

Here is a prediction of what the Philadelphia 76ers will do with their crop of 2023 free agents.

As the Philadelphia 76ers navigate the offseason, there are only so many avenues the team can use to improve.

At the moment, per HoopsHype, the Sixers have:

  • Non-taxpayer mid-level exception: $12,220,000 (could lose access to this if they go over the apron)
  • Bi-annual exception: $4,448,000 (could lose access to this if they go over the apron)

There isn’t exactly a clear avenue for Philadelphia to go about improving their roster through free agency. Of course, there are sign-and-trade possibilities, but those are always hard to iron out. President of Basketball Operations Daryl Morey has many questions he has to answer.

Of course, the biggest question is James Harden, but one has to figure Morey and the Sixers will figure something out there.

Free agency will begin on June 30 and per Spotrac, there are nine free agents the Sixers have to decide on.

Sixers Wire will predict who stays and who goes:

2022-23 final Philadelphia 76ers player grades: Jalen McDaniels

Here are the final thoughts and a grade for Philadelphia 76ers wing player Jalen McDaniels.

The 2022-23 season ended for the Philadelphia 76ers with a Game 7 loss to the Boston Celtics in the second round of the playoffs, so it’s time to reflect.

The Sixers finished 54-28 and were third in the Eastern Conference behind the Milwaukee Bucks and the Celtics. Considering the 12-12 start, the season was a success despite the sour and familiar ending.

Now it’s time to grade each player on the roster for what they did throughout the season. In this installment, Sixers Wire looks at wing player Jalen McDaniels, who was acquired at the deadline from the Charlotte Hornets.

3 big questions Sixers must address in important 2023 offseason

Here are three big questions the Philadelphia 76ers must address in an important 2023 offseason.

The offseason is here for the Philadelphia 76ers after their season ended in familiar fashion: in Round 2 of the playoffs.

The Sixers have some issues that need to be addressed as they head into an important offseason. Some believe they are at a bit of a crossroads after falling in the Eastern Conference semifinals in five of the past six seasons. President of Basketball Operations Daryl Morey has done a solid job of putting together competitive rosters, but they haven’t been able to push through.

For the Sixers, there are a few questions that they need to address in the summer in order to be serious contenders in the 2023-24 season and those questions are:

Player grades: Celtics use balanced attack to beat Sixers in Game 3

The Boston Celtics used a balanced attack in order to knock off the Philadelphia 76ers in Game 3 on the road.

PHILADELPHIA–The scene was set for the Philadelphia 76ers on Friday night. They returned home with a 1-1 split in Boston, Joel Embiid was presented with his MVP award in an emotional moment before the game, and the Wells Fargo Center was a madhouse on Broad Street.

The game didn’t start off great as Boston started off red-hot on the offensive end and they built up a double-digit lead. They maintained a lead for the majority of the game, and while the Sixers fought back and even took a lead, they weren’t able to get it done. The Celtis walked away with an important 114-102 victory. Boston had six players score in double-figures.

Embiid had 30 points, 13 rebounds, and four blocks to lead Philadelphia, Tyrese Maxey had 13 points and six rebounds, PJ Tucker had nine, and De’Anthony Melton added 14 and eight rebounds. Tobias Harris had seven points and four boards while Harden had 16 on 3-for-14 shooting, 11 assists, and six rebounds with five turnovers.

Here are the player grades following the loss at home:

Player grades: Joel Embiid returns, but Sixers fall to Celtics in Game 2

Joel Embiid returned from injury, but the Philadelphia 76ers fell to the Boston Celtics in Game 2 as the series is now 1-1.

BOSTON — With Joel Embiid back in the lineup, the Philadelphia 76ers were looking to get greedy on Wednesday night and take a 2-0 series lead with them back to the Wells Fargo Center.

The Boston Celtics were trying to get on the board in this series and give themselves a chance.

The Sixers, however, had a tough time finding a consistent offensive rhythm. They were getting good looks all night, but they weren’t able to take advantage of any of them. It led to a 121-87 Game 2 loss, leaving the series tied at 1. Philadelphia shot 6-for-30 from deep.

Embiid had 15 points on 4-for-9 shooting and five blocks in his return, James Harden had 12 points on 2-for-14 shooting and 10 rebounds, Tyrese Maxey had 13 points, and Tobias Harris had 16 points and seven rebounds.

Here are the player grades following the loss:

Player grades: James Harden leads Sixers past Celtics in Game 1

James Harden goes off to lead the Philadelphia 76ers past the Boston Celtics in Game 1 on the road.

BOSTON — The Philadelphia 76ers visited the TD Garden to begin the Eastern Conference semifinals looking to steal a game without their best player, Joel Embiid. The Celtics, who took three out of four from Philadelphia in the regular season, are a big challenge in this postseason.

The Sixers stayed in this one despite Boston shooting a ridiculous 71.8% from the floor in the first half. Philadelphia was only down three at halftime. Eventually, James Harden led one helluva victory, 119-115, and Philadelphia took the 1-0 series lead. The Beard had 45 points on 17-for-30 shooting and six assists to lead Philadelphia.

De’Anthony Melton provided a big lift with 17 points off the bench. Tobias Harris added 18 points and five rebounds, and Tyrese Maxey had 26 points. Paul Reed had 10 points and 13 rebounds.

Here are the player grades following the impressive win:

Sixers discuss how to slow Celtics stars Jayson Tatum, Jaylen Brown

The Philadelphia 76ers discuss how they can slow down Boston Celtics stars Jayson Tatum and Jaylen Brown.

BOSTON — The biggest challenge for the Philadelphia 76ers in this Eastern Conference semifinal series, other than overcoming the injury to Joel Embiid, will be slowing Boston Celtics stars Jayson Tatum and Jaylen Brown.

One of the more fearsome duos in the league, they are responsible for everything the Celtics do on the floor. Tatum is a ruthless scorer who can also rebound at an efficient rate. He is also a willing passer who gets his teammates involved. Brown can score at a high rate while also being one of the top defenders in the game on the other end.

Defending those two will be a big priority in this series for Philadelphia.

“I don’t think about really stopping them,” Jalen McDaniels said. “It’s just like making it hard for them just because they’re great players. They’re gonna get to their spots. It’s not like you can stop somebody from making one shot, a couple shots, so I feel like when they’re trying to score, making it hard on them, a lot of pressure.”

McDaniels will be one of the defenders coach Doc Rivers will call upon to try to slow Tatum and Brown. McDaniels was acquired from the Charlotte Hornets for these moments.

“My length would bother them,” McDaniels added. “Just trying to make it harder, I can’t not let him score a couple points you know? So just making it hard is the biggest thing I say. No easy points, stuff like that.”

Along with the elite scoring Tatum and Brown bring to the table, they also get their teammates involved. Derrick White, Al Horford, Grant Williams, Malcolm Brogdon, Robert Williams III thrive off what those two do on the floor.

“Because they don’t mind sharing the ball,” PJ Tucker said. “They move the ball really well no matter who it is. They hit the open guy and they’re always attacking. They’re in attack mode at all times. So on closeouts, trying to close out to touch to make sure they don’t pull up for a shot, and still controlling the drive, and it’s really it’s easier said than done, but they do a good job of moving the ball and playing together.”

Game 1 of this series is set for 7:30 p.m. EDT on Monday in Boston.

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