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Philadelphia 76ers Give Way To Youth After Waiving Gerald Wallace

By Jake Hyman

Mar 7, 2015; San Jose, CA, USA; UNLV Rebels forward Christian Wood (5) controls the ball against the San Jose State Spartans during the first half at San Jose State Event Center. Mandatory Credit: Ed Szczepanski-USA TODAY Sports
Mar 7, 2015; San Jose, CA, USA; UNLV Rebels forward Christian Wood (5) controls the ball against the San Jose State Spartans during the first half at San Jose State Event Center. Mandatory Credit: Ed Szczepanski-USA TODAY Sports /
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The Philadelphia 76ers are cleaning house in anticipation of training camp. The team waived veteran forward Gerald Wallace yesterday, per ESPN’s Marc Stein, in an attempt to eventually trim the roster down to 15 players.

Wallace had a successful career in previous stops such as Charlotte and Portland, but wasn’t the ideal commodity for the Sixers. He’s the antithesis, actually.

Wallace, per Spotrac, was expected to make a shade over $10 million playing for the Sixers this season. The team is still expected to pay Wallace every penny of his hefty contract, however. Coming over in the Jason Thompson deal, Wallace was essentially filler as the pick swap was the more enticing aspect for the Sixers.

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Now Wallace will be a more desirable talent as a free agent on a much cheaper deal. It’s also beneficial for Philadelphia, who can now see what they have among their younger assortment of players looking for a roster spot.

Guys like Scottie Wilbekin, Christian Wood and Richaun Holmes will be heavily evaluated throughout training camp. Both Wood and Holmes could be factors with a forward being dropped from the roster.

While Wallace was essentially an expensive veteran whose skill set has been slowly deteriorating after reaching his twilight in Brooklyn, Wood is a rookie with high upside in a 6-foot-10 package.

Feb 24, 2015; Logan, UT, USA; UNLV Rebels forward Christian Wood (5) hangs on the rim after a dunk in the first half against the Utah State Aggies at Dee Glen Smith Spectrum. Mandatory Credit: Jeff Swinger-USA TODAY Sports
Feb 24, 2015; Logan, UT, USA; UNLV Rebels forward Christian Wood (5) hangs on the rim after a dunk in the first half against the Utah State Aggies at Dee Glen Smith Spectrum. Mandatory Credit: Jeff Swinger-USA TODAY Sports /

It would be almost hypocritical, as the team has acknowledged focusing on player development, for the Sixers to divvy up time to Wallace and not Wood or a guy like Richaun Holmes. Wood is a primary four with stretch capabilities as an athletic floor spacer, but also can play some five in a smaller lineup.

It’s hard to point to a guy on the Sixers’ second unit last year in the frontcourt and say he has a chance to go for a double-double on any occasion. Wood averaged a double-double his sophomore year at UNLV and dominated while playing on an inefficient Runnin’ Rebel unit.

He fits the mentality of the Sixers clamoring for relatively high-ceiling players and inking them to contracts with little risk. It’s been referred to as “The Hinkie Special” as players, especially rookies, sign multi-year non-guaranteed deals in the hope of proving their worth in the future.

Holmes, a second-round pick from Bowling Green State, encompasses what Wood brings to the court as another 6-foot-10 stretch 4 who’s looking to make an impact in his rookie season.

He might not have similar athleticism as Wood, but the 21-year-old can reject the opposition (2.7 BPG in junior year) and step outside the arc (42 percent from downtown in 2014-15).

DraftExpress’ and Liberty Ballers’ Derek Bodner articulated the strengths of Holmes, on both ends of the floor, and how he could develop them in the NBA:

"“More likely to translate to the next level is his ability as a scorer off the ball. Holmes is a strong offensive rebounder, collecting four offensive rebounds per 40 minutes pace adjusted. Holmes does a terrific job of converting these opportunities, as he’s very quick off of his feet and has added some much needed strength to his frame over the years to help him finish through contact, although this is an area where he still has some room to grow.“Despite the strong strides Holmes has made over the years on the offensive end, his biggest impact is on the defensive end, where he earned the MAC Defensive Player of the Year award this past season. His length, explosiveness, and quickness off his feet, combined with good instincts and timing as a shot blocker, allowed Holmes to block 3.8 blocks per 40 minutes pace adjusted, tied for the 4th best figure in our database and just below the 2.2 per 40 minutes pace adjusted that Karl-Anthony Towns posted.”"

Acquiring both Carl Landry and Gerald Wallace, Holmes’ minutes looked to be at a premium his rookie season.

Now he has an opportunity to translate a strong training camp into a rotation role to start the season. With just Landry and Furkan Aldemir expected to provide frontcourt depth heading into the season, Philadelphia could use another big when either Nerlens Noel or Jahlil Okafor could use a break.

Even the guards have benefited, as J.P. Tokoto, Jordan McRae and T.J. McConnell are now on the training camp roster for the Sixers, per the Philly Inquirer’s Keith Pompey.

The Sixers will be on the books for just over $10.8 million Wallace was expected to make this season, but a more in-depth look at the developing bigs gives the organization a purpose heading into training camp.

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