Top 5 worst free agent signings in the history of the Philadelphia 76ers
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Free agency is set to begin in the NBA on June 30 and now is the time to look back at some free-agent history for the Philadelphia 76ers.
Every team makes some type of move in free agency every season. When a team brings in a fresh face to the roster, it believes the signing will help push it over the top.
However, there are good signings and there are bad signings that do not work out at all, and the latter is what this post focuses on.
The list is based on money received combined with lack of impact and how results played out on the court during that player’s time in Philadelphia. Let’s get to the list:
Dishonorable mentions
Brian Skinner – 2004 offseason
Skinner had a solid 2002-03 season with the Sixers helping them reach the playoffs. After a season with the Milwaukee Bucks, Skinner returned to Philadelphia on a five-year $25 million deal. He averaged 2 points and 2.6 rebounds in 24 games before being moved to the Sacramento Kings for Chris Webber.
Kenny Thomas – 2003 offseason
The Sixers acquired Thomas from the Houston Rockets in December 2002. He averaged 10.2 points and 8.5 rebounds, but Philadelphia then re-signed him for seven years and $50 million. That was far too big a commitment for him, and he was moved to the Kings with Skinner in the Webber deal.
No. 5 Kwame Brown
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Brown signed a two-year, $5.7 million deal in the 2012 offseason, and he played a grand total of 22 games. He averaged 1.9 points and 3.4 rebounds in those games and he never played another NBA game again. He later became the fifth overall pick of the Big3.
No. 4 Scott Williams
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The Sixers liked Williams because then-GM and coach John Lucas liked that he knew how to win. Therefore, the Sixers signed him to a seven-year deal. However, he wasn’t able to bring any of the lessons he learned with Michael Jordan. He played 212 games in Philadelphia, averaging 5.3 points and 5.4 rebounds per game, before he was traded to the Milwaukee Bucks, with whom he faced the Sixers in the 2001 Eastern Conference finals.
No. 3 Elton Brand
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Before Brand joined the Sixers, he was one of the best big men in the league. He averaged 20.3 points and 10.3 rebounds across seven seasons with the Los Angeles Clippers and he was a two-time All-Star. Philadelphia signed him to the “Philly max” deal of five years and $182 million, but he wasn’t the same player anymore. He averaged 13.3 points and 7.4 rebounds in four seasons before being released ahead of the final season of his contract.
No. 2 Matt Geiger
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Geiger signed a six-year $48 million deal in the 1998 offseason, and he had some bright spots. He averaged 13.5 points and 7.2 rebounds in the first season of the deal. After that? His numbers declined every season and he only played four games in the 2001-02 season, his final one.
Perhaps the highlight of Geiger’s time in Philadelphia was his refusal to waive his trade kicker in 2001 in a deal that would have sent him and Allen Iverson to the Detroit Pistons. That kept Iverson in Philadelphia and the rest is history.
No. 1 Al Horford
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The Horford signing was always questionable after he signed for four years and $109 million, but the on-court fit was more of a disaster than anyone anticipated. The Sixers hoped to team him with Embiid and play smashmouth basketball while having a very reliable backup for the big fella, but Horford could not mesh with either Embiid or Ben Simmons. The result was dysfunctional basketball.
Combined with Philly losing Jimmy Butler that offseason and Butler leading the Miami Heat to the NBA Finals in 2020 and the Sixers waiving the white flag and trading Horford after just one season, the deal just looks downright awful.
