76ers' Caleb Martin signing earns Skip Bayless cosign
07/07/2024 05:36 PM
On Saturday, it was reported by NBA insider Adrian Wojnarowski of ESPN that free agent forward Caleb Martin was choosing to depart the Miami Heat in order to sign a new four-year contract with the Philadelphia 76ers in this free agency period. Martin joins a76ers team that has already been busy this free agency period, having signed away Paul George from the Los Angeles Clippers, and brings depth, grit, and championship experience to a roster that still needs to be filled out in some areas.
One person who is optimistic about what Martin can bring to the 76ers’ rotation is none other than FS1 sports media personality Skip Bayless, who recently took to X, the social media platform formerly referred to as Twitter, to relay his thoughts.
“Caleb Martin is a surprisingly good signing for the Sixers who have already had several (PG, EG, Drummond). So the pressure mounts on Joel Embiid,” wrote Bayless.
“EG” would of course refer to Eric Gordon, another veteran wing that the 76ers have brought in so far to help supplement their star trio, and Bayless also referenced Andre Drummond, who is set to begin his second stint in a Philadelphia uniform following his time with the Chicago Bulls this past season.
Is this a championship roster?
Caleb Martin figures to bring a lot to a 76ers team that still had (and still has, to some extent), some gaps to fill on their roster in order to bring the most out of the trio of Joel Embiid, Paul George, and Tyrese Maxey.
Martin is a very solid defender who has hovered around 35 percent from beyond the three point line for the last few years, meaning he isn’t necessarily a sniper but he’s also not someone who defenses can afford to just leave open.
There’s also the added benefit that Martin has garnered a reputation as a Boston Celtics killer over the last couple of years, consistently torching that franchise and thoroughly outplaying Jaylen Brown during the 2023 Eastern Conference Finals. The Celtics, of course, figure to be the one team in the Eastern Conference that is still definitively better than Philadelphia, meaning it certainly would help the 76ers to acquire any psychological advantage that they can potentially find.
At this point, it would appear unlikely that Martin would be inserted into the 76ers starting lineup, unless Philadelphia chooses to play small, with Maxey, Kelly Oubre, Martin, George, and Embiid. That lineup could potentially work due to the fact that it boasts three strong wing defenders, although George would be playing out of position at the power forward spot.
Daryl Morey and company have done an impressive job thus far of filling out this roster with proven talent in order to maximize the potential of the star studded big three, and it would appear that the 76ers still have a bit of work to be done before they are fully able to come into their own.
However, if they are able to stay healthy (which is a big if), this is probably the best chance the team is going to have at a championship in the Embiid era.
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