With the trade deadline finally over, the Philadelphia 76ers can now shift their focus to looking for players on the open market, where they will have much more freedom to pick a number of available names that can help them in their escapade to land a high seed come playoff time. Luckily for them, a former fan favorite is now ready to go.
Georges Niang, who played a few seasons with the 76ers from 2021 to 2023, has just been released by the Grizzlies. He was dealt by the Jazz in the semi-blockbuster trade involving Jaren Jackson Jr. was involved, and for now he still has no home. As such, the front office might take a flier on their former forward.
The veteran never touched the Jazz hardwood this season due to injuries, but with Utah transitioning to a full-fledged youth movement, that may have been an excuse to shut him down completely. His position in the league has become shaky, but Niang still has some good qualities that the 76ers could find attractive to have off the bench.
The 76ers can now reunite with Georges Niang if they so choose
Now 32 years old, Niang is likely already in the twilight of his career given his declining physical tools that were never a major selling point of his in the first place. But that said, he is still a very capable three-point shooter who can be used to create space and arm the team with someone who can punish unsuspecting defenders.
Niang is a 40 percent shooter from Rainbow Country and offers great value as a backup sniper in the second unit. He doesn’t really offer anything else at the moment, but he is very skilled with the ball and rarely makes mistakes in that area.
The biggest concern (aside from his health, of course) is his defense. He’s never been a game-changer in that department due to his lack of foot speed, though he’s been at least tolerable in the past due to his basketball IQ. But given his current status, the 76ers won’t get any dose of defensive sharpness if they reunite with Niang.
Still, for a utility player, Niang actually makes a lot of sense for the 76ers. With Paul George still out due to a 25-game suspension, the team could use a quality forward who can give them some size and strength at the position. In fact, he knows both Joel Embiid and Tyrese Maxey, having played with them for a few years.
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