With the Philadelphia 76ers now eliminated thanks to a clean 4-0 sweep handed to them by the Knicks, the front office now has every reason to look forward to the offseason. Half of their roster could potentially hit the open market, so a lot of vital decisions will be incumbent upon the team's brain trust, especially during free agency. One front worth monitoring will be Andre Drummond, who is set to be available for taking anew.
Drummond has been solid for the most part, especially during their first-round series against the Celtics. However, he failed to follow it up against the Knicks, and eventually, he got usurped in the rotation. The 76ers seem to have come to the realization that he can no longer be a stable option to man the backup center spot, and that will definitely have an impact on his free agency situation with the team.
Still somehow only 32 years old, Drummond has shown that he has something left in the tank. Be that as it may, that does not equate to the 76ers having an urgent need for what he can bring to the table. At best, he is a third-string big man who, if given ample court time, signals a not-so-ideal situation on the team health-wise or depth-wise.
The 76ers are more likely to move away from Andre Drummond in free agency
New York posed a tougher challenge for the 76ers's squadron of big men, and Drummond, in particular, did not fare well. While he initially functioned as the primary backup to Joel Embiid against the Knicks, Nick Nurse and the coaching staff eventually leaned into Adem Bona, then to Dominick Barlow, as the series went on.
The Knicks basically negated whatever value Drummond had on the floor. The veteran big man is no longer a reliable finisher in the paint, and while his rebounding remains steady, the pros of trotting him out there no longer outweight the clear cons attendant with deploying him on the floor.
As such, one can expect the 76ers to move away from Drummond the moment he and his camp asks for something even slightly above the minimum. Heck, even if he does stay in Philly, it would be far from the first move the front office undertakes to do in free agency. Younger and more secure options are bound to become available, which makes his footing with the franchise rather shaky.
Andre Drummond was a serviceable piece for the 76ers this season, but he will not be a priority to keep for the team in the coming summer. With his inarguable decline in display, it simply makes more sense if the front office goes for a younger big man to replace his spot.