Has Furkan Korkmaz earned his next contract with Philadelphia 76ers?

Furkan Korkmaz wasn’t initially in the Philadelphia 76ers’ offseason plans, but they have to be happy he ended up in them.

The Philadelphia 76ers‘ relationship with Furkan Korkmaz is not normal. The fact that he’s still here would be a very weird topic in Philly if not for all the other crazy stuff that’s happened.

One of three players left from the Colangelo Era, Korkmaz wasn’t supposed to come back for the 2019-20 season. Brett Brown was reluctant to give him playing time in either of his first two seasons stateside and this led to the team declining his option for year three.

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As Korkmaz rotted on the Sixers bench last season, he asked for a trade, to no avail.

As Philly reshaped its roster for the umpteenth time, Korkmaz had trouble finding a job elsewhere in the NBA. He was on the verge of returning to Europe, but he and the Sixers stumbled upon each other once again, as the Turk signed a two-year minimum deal with the second season non-guaranteed.

He’s been more than anyone could ask for this season. With the Thiccsers short on shooting following J.J. Redick‘s departure, Brett Brown felt the need to “grow a bomber.” Korkmaz has grown into one, averaging the second-most 3-point attempts on the team (4.8 per game) while draining a healthy 38.9 percent of them.

In addition, of all 303 players logging at least 15 minutes a night, Korkmaz ranks 96th in True Shooting Percentage at 58.4 percent. At 6’7″ with a release point above his head and a quick trigger, his shots are very difficult to contest. He’s a legitimate gunner who has finally been allowed to let it fly.

Shooting is not his only strength either. Korkmaz has gotten some touches on the ball, setting up some side pick-and-rolls with the artistic license to do his thing approximately once a game (13 times in 15 contests). He’s generated exactly 13 points on such possessions (1.0 points per possession, 80th percentile), and also has an assist-turnover ratio above 1.0.

Korkmaz is still below average on defense (minus-1.8 defensive box plus-minus, second-lowest of anyone with legitimate minutes), but he’s definitely working hard on that end. The question of “should the Sixers keep him?” is a resounding yes. How they keep him around, though, will require serious salary cap gymnastics.

The third-year wing is set to earn $1.7 million next year, a gross underpay at the moment. Credit to the front office for buying low on him.

Philly’s cap sheet won’t make it easy to keep him long term. Even if Josh Richardson declines his player option for 2021-22 (highly likely) and bolts, the Sixers will still be paying Joel Embiid, Tobias Harris, Al Horford and Ben Simmons an estimated $126.2 million combined (per Spotrac).

Assuming that Matisse Thybulle and Zhaire Smith‘s team options are exercised, that adds another $7.7 million to the books, rounding to about $134 million in total allocations before tending to Korkmaz, James Ennis (player option for 2020-21) or Mike Scott.

Considering Scott will be 33 and coming off the Mid-Level Exception, he’s likely to play for the minimum by then. Ditto for Ennis; Philly can only keep him at that price tag. Fortunately the Sixers retained Korkmaz’s full Bird rights after this summer, meaning they can go over the cap to keep him, per Scott Cashin of Sports Talk Philly.

Retaining him past 2021 is doable, but it may require the team dipping into the luxury tax. They got pretty close to it this season and will likely get close to the threshold or exceed it next season. Does ownership want to penny up at a spiked rate for Furkan Korkmaz? Probably not; his skills are valuable, but can be found elsewhere.

But if the Sixers want to stay in contention, it may be a necessary cost in the quest for titles.