PHILADELPHIA — The Sixers didn’t get a big man to fill the void left by the injured Joel Embiid, but they dealt for a proven three-point shooter in Buddy Hield before the NBA trade deadline Thursday.
Also, for reasons that escape many, the Sixers positioned themselves financially to add the 37-year-old Kyle Lowry if the long-ago Villanova point guard with the NBA championship ring is available in a post-deadline contract buyout.
Active as the Sixers were, it won’t mean a thing until center Joel Embiid gets healthy. Embiid and his surgically repaired left knee will be evaluated in four weeks. By then, it should be clear whether the 6-foot-4 Hield can find open spots and nail enough threes to stretch defenses.
The Sixers picked up the deadly three-point shooter in a three-team trade for a couple of songs as they sent Marcus Morris and Furkan Korkmaz plus three second-round picks to the Indiana Pacers for the 31-year-old Hield. It was reported later that Korkmaz was going to be waived by the Pacers, while Morris and an Indiana second-round pick were swapped to the San Antonio Spurs for Doug McDermott, another three-point bomber.
Hield has 1,842 three-pointers since entering the league, a number that trails only Steph Curry. In the last five-plus seasons, Hield has a league-leading 1,240 threes, making 39.3 percent in that time.
Hield started 28 of 52 games this season for the Pacers. He’s averaging 12.0 points, 3.2 rebounds and 2.7 assists in 25.7 minutes, with 38.4 percent accuracy from three-point range.
The entertainment value alone in Hield might be worth it because few teams have been more painful to watch from three-point distance this season than the Sixers. Minus Embiid they are in the league basement in attempts and makes per game. He is shooting 40.1 percent from downtown in his career, and his contract expires at the end of this season.
The Sixers also acquired backup point guard Cam Payne and a 2027 second-round pick from the Milwaukee Bucks for veteran point guard Pat Beverley, who announced it during his podcast. Beverly said he was happy to be reunited with coach Doc Rivers, formerly of the Sixers.
The Sixers traded swingman Danuel House, a second-round pick in 20224 and cash to the Detroit Pistons for a 2028 second-round pick. It’s safe to say House hasn’t lived up to his potential. Motown will be his seventh NBA stop. Another exiting Sixer was guard Jaden Springer, their first-round pick in 2021, who went to the Boston Celtics for a second-round pick, per ESPN. Springer played stellar defense on Curry in a loss Wednesday at WFC. Curry made just 2 of 7 shots overall, including 1 of 4 three-point attempts.
The Sixers didn’t get a big man, although Kelly Olynyk was available. The Pistons shipped him to Toronto in a package that included a first-round pick. Olynyk was born in Toronto.
Center Andre Drummond, who played for the Sixers three seasons ago, remained with the Pistons.
The Sixers selected Korkmaz with the 26th pick in the 2016 draft, the forward seeing action in 328 games with 49 starts over six-plus seasons. Korkmaz averaged 6.8 points and 2.0 rebounds this season.
Morris was a piece in a seven-player, three-team deal with the Los Angeles Clippers and Oklahoma City Thunder in November. He averaged 6.7 points and 2.9 rebounds in 37 games with the Sixers.
The Sixers have their fingers crossed that Embiid will be able to return on the short side of a 4-to-6 week timetable that is anything but etched in stone. Hield theoretically would provide more space for Embiid at the offensive end, the Sixers lacking a three-point ace since they moved on from JJ Reddick.
Source: Berkshire mont
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