Another Sixers Signing Raises Questions About Paul Reed

With Montrezl Harrell on his way back, is Paul Reed on the outs?

The Philadelphia 76ers are slowly but surely adding prospects to their roster this offseason. Despite not having any selections in the 2023 NBA Draft, Philadelphia acquired a handful of prospects via the undrafted pool.

And although the Sixers didn’t make any immediate signings when the free agency floodgates opened up last week, Daryl Morey and the front office added three new veteran prospects over the span of six days. Thursday night’s signing happens to be a familiar face.

The Sixers are bringing back the veteran center Montrezl Harrell. According to NBC Sports Philadelphia’s Noah Levick, Harrell returns on a one-year deal.

Just last summer, Harrell was a late offseason signing, joining the team on a two-year deal. The second season on the contract was a player option. A few weeks back, Harrell decided to decline his player option, which signaled the veteran was set to hit the open market.

Considering Harrell struggled to carve out a consistent role during his lone season in Philadelphia, he seemed good as gone when he declined his player option for the 2023-2024 season. Harrell proved that theory to be wrong, as he’s set to come back for another season.

With Harrell set to return to the Sixers, questions regarding Paul Reed are being raised once again. 

Currently, Reed is a restricted free agent with a qualifying offer extended by the Sixers. So far, there hasn’t been much smoke surrounding a Reed return or departure. 

But with the Sixers adding Mo Bamba and Harrell this week, many are curious about what that means for Paul Reed. Per Levick, neither addition changes Philadelphia’s desire to retain Reed.

Last season, Reed and Harrell rotated as the Sixers’ backup behind Joel Embiid. By the final stretch of the regular season, Reed was Doc Rivers’ go-to guy. In the playoffs, Reed appeared in 11 games, even starting in two matchups. He averaged nearly 15 minutes on the floor during the postseason and posted career-highs with five points and six rebounds per game.

Reed is one of the Sixers’ young and developing prospects who projects a bright future ahead of him at 24 years old. The additions of Bamba and Harrell could be viewed as decent security blankets in the event the Sixers lose Reed to another team, but the Sixers remain committed to the former second-round pick.