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With news that Joel Embiid’s Sixers return could be “imminent,” it begs the question: after Embiid and Tyrese Maxey, who might the team’s third-best player be this postseason?
Let’s look at a few of the candidates.
The statistics provided via NBA.com reflect the games played since Feb. 1, when the reigning MVP and back-to-back scoring champ out of Kansas missed his first of the team’s last 29 regular-season games following knee surgery.
Tobias Harris
Harris has the dubious distinction of being the NBA player with the highest career earnings to have never made an All-Star team. Because of the expectations his salary established, fans have long been disappointed. But that doesn’t mean Harris couldn’t easily be the team’s third-best player down the home stretch. Try to forget about the money he makes when placing your vote, or it becomes too easy to let feelings get in the way.
Since Joel went down he did hit a massive, massive funk. But lately, he seems to have found his stride again.
Harris’ per game stats since Joel went down:
23 games, 34 minutes, 16.3 point, 45.5% FG, 31.9 3pt %, 7.1 rebounds, 3 assists, 1.1 steals, .8 blocks, +/-: -4.7
Kelly Oubre, Jr.
Oubre on the polar opposite end of the salary spectrum from Harris, was signed for just $2M this offseason and has on many-a-night outproduced Harris outright. When Maxey is out of the lineup (whether it’s by Nick Nurse’s design or his own unbridled confidence), KOj seems to assume “head-of-the-snake” duties, as the team’s go-to player in the halfcourt.
He’s dropped 23 or more 12 times this season. Since Embiid went down, a look at Oubre’s per game numbers:
27 games, 32.4 minutes, 17.3 points, 40.4, FG%, 27.2 3pt%, 5.6 rebounds, 1.9 assists, 1.1 steals, .8 blocks, +/-: -3.6
Kyle Lowry
Lowry was acquired by Philadelphia via buyout market. And despite many fans around the NBA, and more than a few right here at home, thinking he was washed, well, let’s just say rumors of his demise were greatly exaggerated. And shame on anyone who watched the Miami Heat’s NBA Finals run and didn’t notice Lowry’s myriad, instrumental, contributions along the way. He’s already brought much of that and more in his brief stint in his hometown.
If there were one player on the 76ers who were called upon to drain two key free throws to ice a road win in Boston or Milwaukee, I’d have to strongly consider Ice-Water Kyle.
His numbers as a Sixer won’t blow anyone away, but fans who #watchthedamngames know:
18 games, 29.1 minutes, 8.7 points, 43.2 % FG%, 39 3pt%, 2.8 rebounds, 4.8 assists, 1 steals, +/-: -3.4
Buddy Hield
I’m going to reverse course and show you Bahama Buddy Buckets’ stats since Joel went down first, then discuss:
25 games, 27.4 minutes, 12.8 points, 44% FG%, 39.4% 3pt%, 3.2 rebounds, 3.5 assists, +/-: -2.7
We’ll take the 39.4 percent from distance all day, every day. But after the way he stormed out the gate as a Sixer following the trade, I’ve been mildly disappointed with Buddy, and to be honest, he was almost an afterthought for me when I first began this exercise.
But then I stopped for a moment and remembered the initial question: who might be the Sixers’ third-best player be when the postseason begins. And if Joel Embiid is back… well, then it’s not difficult to see Oubre taking on less of a scorer’s role, and Buddy filling in some gaps as a lights-out shooter who can reshape the geometry of an entire defense just by changing sides of the floor on offense.
I’m certainly not going to overlook Buddy’s seamless fit with Joel when I consider my vote. We’ve seen what JoJo can do for guys like JJ Redick and Seth Curry.
Nico Batum
19 games, 25 minutes, 5 points, 39.5 FG%, 34.4 3pt%, 4.7 rebounds, 1.7 assists, 0.9 steals, .5 blocks, +-: -1.4
Nico’s stats won’t blow anyone away. I mean 5 points a game since Joel went down, lol. However, if ever there were a player to approximate Daryl Morey’s “No Stats All-Star” that author Michael Lewis once coined former Rockets and Heat role-player extraordinaire Shane Battier… it might just be Nico!
It takes a savvy fan to spot all of the incredible help defense he plays, how he communicates with the defensive backcourt, while picking up slack from a variety of positions. The way he needs no time at all to release his corner threes from a shooting pocket that nearly nips Chamberlain’s banner, breathtaking. And the way he always seems to be bopping rebounds and loose balls to teammates that never even tic the box scores.
Someone should invent a drinking game for whenever Batum bops a board or loose ball to a teammate, helps create a new possession or ignites a fastbreak while not even registering a single stat.
Like Lowry, I’d also trust him to make some crucial free throws on the road. Ice water Nic.
So let’s vote on our postseason X-Factor, shall we?
Sarah Wilson is your guide to the latest trends, viral sensations, and internet phenomena. With a finger on the pulse of digital culture, she explores what’s trending across social media and pop culture, keeping readers in the know about the latest online sensations.
