5 offseason needs for the Philadelphia 76ers

PHILADELPHIA, PA - APRIL 23: Tobias Harris #33 of the Philadelphia 76ers high fives Jimmy Butler #23 against the Brooklyn Nets in Game Five of Round One of the 2019 NBA Playoffs at the Wells Fargo Center on April 23, 2019 in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. NOTE TO USER: User expressly acknowledges and agrees that, by downloading and or using this photograph, User is consenting to the terms and conditions of the Getty Images License Agreement. (Photo by Mitchell Leff/Getty Images) /

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PHILADELPHIA, PA – APRIL 23: Ben Simmons #25, Boban Marjanovic #51, and JJ Redick #17 of the Philadelphia 76ers react against the Brooklyn Nets in Game Five of Round One of the 2019 NBA Playoffs at the Wells Fargo Center on April 23, 2019 in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. NOTE TO USER: User expressly acknowledges and agrees that, by downloading and or using this photograph, User is consenting to the terms and conditions of the Getty Images License Agreement. (Photo by Mitchell Leff/Getty Images) /

2. Bolster their frontcourt depth

The Sixers entered the playoffs with five centers on their roster — Joel Embiid, Boban Marjanovic, Greg Monroe, Amir Johnson and Jonah Bolden.

Embiid is the only one they could consistently rely upon (when healthy).

Marjanovic made his impact felt against the Brooklyn Nets, who lacked the size to negate his rebounding prowess, but the Raptors routinely exploited his lack of lateral quickness in the second round. Monroe showed flashes of relevance against the Nets and Raptors, only to turn back into a pumpkin a game or two later. Johnson is only a victory cigar at this stage of his career, and Bolden is too raw and mistake-prone to play major minutes for now.

Embiid and Bolden are under contract beyond this season, but Marjanovic, Johnson and Monroe will all be unrestricted free agents in July. If the Sixers re-sign Tobias Harris, Marjanovic figures to stick around (Bobi and Tobi 4eva), but they’ll need to bolster their frontcourt depth to give them more viable options when Embiid hits the bench.

If they keep both of their early second-round picks (Nos. 33 and 34), they may spend one on a center such as Arkansas’ Daniel Gafford or Maryland’s Bruno Fernando to have a young prospect to groom behind Embiid. If they go the free-agency route, a veteran like Dewayne Dedmon, Robin Lopez, Aron Baynes (player option) or Kyle O’Quinn could help beef up their frontline.

Either way, the Sixers need a reliable backup to Embiid given his long-standing durability concerns. Going into next season without a single playoff-caliber backup big man would be catastrophic to this team’s chances of making a deep postseason run.

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