Projecting the Sixers 2023-24 Rotation Without James Harden

Who is in and who is out?

Adam Aaronson, whose legal name is Sixers Adam (@SixersAdam on Twitter), covers the Sixers for The Rights To Ricky Sanchez. He believes cantaloupe is the best food in existence, and is brought to you by the Official Realtor of The Process, Adam Ksebe.

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The vast majority of Sixers discourse this summer has surrounded off-court issues -- you don’t need me to tell you why that is. But as we near the start of training camp, it’s time to evaluate what this team has, even if that doesn’t include James Harden.

With about three weeks remaining before things ramp up, for now we must assume the 2023-24 Sixers will look like last year’s team sans Harden as the floor general. The situation involving him will have to resolve itself at some point, but nobody knows when or how it will happen. For now, all we can do is discuss what we do know: the players on the roster who will be part of this team.

Mapping out a team’s rotation is always a difficult exercise. Let’s give it a shot:

Starters

Tyrese Maxey: 35 minutes (all at point guard)

It is no secret that Maxey needs to make another leap, this time as a creator for his teammates. He can score in bunches and do so efficiently, making him one of the league’s best young guards. But without last year’s NBA leader in assists per game, the Sixers are desperate for viable passing. Maxey is the closest thing they have to it. 

While 35 minutes is a heavy load, even for a player like Maxey, new Sixers Head Coach Nick Nurse is known to ride his best players, for better or worse. Expect a significant workload for Maxey.

De’Anthony Melton: 33 minutes (27 at shooting guard, 6 at small forward)

Melton was massively valuable in his first year as a Sixer, and if the Harden saga drags on into the season, his importance will only increase. Melton’s multi-positional defensive abilities and spot-up shooting make him one of the league’s best perimeter role players. He will never be a primary creator, but he did knock down 39 percent of his threes on career-high volume and put himself among the league leaders in steals and deflections.

Tobias Harris: 35 minutes (27 at small forward, 8 at power forward)

Harris would spend the vast majority of his time at the four in a perfect world. The Sixers, however, do not live in a perfect world. Harris made major strides as a defensive player last season, taking pride in guarding many of the league’s best wings. But as he enters the final season on his infamous five-year deal, the Sixers need consistent offensive production from Harris more than ever.

PJ Tucker: 24 minutes (all at power forward)

Tucker could see time at center in certain matchups, but for the most part we know what he is. He will defend, he will compete and he will stand in the corner. It is very fair to wonder if Tucker’s athleticism will take another noteworthy nosedive, and it is also fair to worry that his impact will be limited without Harden in the picture.

Joel Embiid: 33 minutes (all at center)

The reigning NBA MVP is, of course, locked in as the team’s center and will be at the center of everything it does. The interesting wrinkle with this roster is that Embiid may share the floor with another big on a consistent basis for the first time since the team had guys like Dario Saric, Ersan Ilyasova and Richaun Holmes. It will be interesting to see how he coexists with Paul Reed, whose skills somewhat resemble those of Holmes, and Bamba, whose shooting ability allows him to space the floor.

Bench rotation players

Patrick Beverley: 21 minutes (13 at point guard, 8 at shooting guard)

Beverley may have signed for the veteran’s minimum, but Harden’s absence grants him the important status of the team’s third guard. Beverley has not played fewer than 22.5 per game in a season since his rookie year. His career average of 27.4 minutes per game will decline a bit in Philadelphia, but he is going to be a major part of this team.

Jaden Springer: 13 minutes (all at shooting guard)

With eight players who I view as rotation locks on the roster, I went into this exercise expecting to have to choose between going small and playing Springer or using big lineups featuring Bamba, with the other player missing out on playing time. But the more I studied the options, it became clear that both can have a role during the regular season. Springer’s introduction into the rotation would help lift the burden off of Maxey, Melton and Beverley. Furkan Korkmaz could be an option over Springer, but the incoming third-year player has earned a chance at consistent playing time and seems like the preferable option for a coach like Nurse who covets athleticism, length and defensive versatility.

Danuel House Jr.: 15 minutes (all at small forward)

House Jr. is the team’s only true bench wing in this projected rotation, which is a viable path thanks to Melton and Beverley, who are able to defend above their height and challenge most wings.

Mo Bamba: 14 minutes (8 at power forward, 6 at center)

You may not guess it based on his size, but Bamba’s primary offensive skill right now is three-point shooting. Sliding him into the rotation as someone who can give you spot minutes at the four and the five helps ease the load on Harris and Embiid without taking away some intriguing opportunities from one other player…

Paul Reed: 17 minutes (8 at power forward, 9 at center)

Reed spending time at the four next to Embiid is an idea that has gained momentum over the summer, and I think he will do it while also sharing the floor with Bamba in other two-big lineups. The possibilities are endless when you combine Reed’s athletic tools with Embiid’s skill and mind.

Out of the rotation

That leaves four non-Harden players out of the rotation: Korkmaz, the newly-reacquired Danny Green, rookie Filip Petrusev and the injured Montrezl Harrell. 

Green’s athleticism has likely been almost entirely zapped by now, Petrusev figures to be a longer-term project and Harrell will miss at least the vast majority of the season with a torn ACL.

If Korkmaz has a chance of cracking the rotation out of training camp, it would be in place of Springer. But for now, I see the Sixers taking Springer’s defensive talent and untapped potential over Korkmaz’s shooting.