Paul Reed Talks Returning to Sixers, Possible Tweaked Role

Paul Reed speaks for the first time since re-signing with the Sixers.

The Philadelphia 76ers were put on the clock by the Utah Jazz to match a multi-year contract offer.

As a restricted free agent, the young veteran Paul Reed inked a three-year offer sheet from the Jazz, which was worth $23 million. The Sixers had less than two days to match the offer, or else they would lose Reed to free agency a few years after drafting him.

Daryl Morey and the Sixers’ front office surely made the situation suspenseful. As the deadline approached, the Sixers waited until the final 90 minutes to finally make their decision.

Although some were skeptical that the re-signing of Montrezl Harrell and the acquisition of Mo Bamba left the Sixers feeling comfortable enough to save their money and allow Reed to take off to Utah, Philadelphia matched the offer sheet. Now, Bball Paul is back in the City of Brotherly Love.

“I’m glad they was able to match the offer,” Reed said on 97.5 The Fanatic on Friday morning. While Reed admittedly didn't envision joining the Jazz for the next three seasons, he wasn’t going to pass up the opportunity to collect his most significant contract offer as a professional basketball player.

“That’s not a place that I had in mind, but business is business,” Reed continued.

Reed’s first three seasons with the Sixers were definitely a grind. After he was a late second-round selection out of DePaul in 2020, the young big started his pro career as a two-way signee, spending most of his time in the G League. Thriving at the developmental level, Reed earned MVP and Rookie of the Year honors in the G League, which led to a standard contract offer from Philadelphia.

While Reed’s playing time on the main roster increased over the last two seasons, his role was still inconsistent. Playing under Doc Rivers, Reed didn’t have a lot of room for mistakes. Last year, he appeared in a career-high 69 games, averaging four points and four rebounds in 11 minutes of action.

On multiple occasions, Reed found himself yanked from the team’s rotation, but by the end of the regular season, he was Joel Embiid’s primary backup for the playoff run. 

The 2023 NBA Playoffs is where Reed made his money. In 11 games, Reed averaged 14 minutes on the floor, putting up five points per game while coming down with six rebounds per game. With Embiid dealing with an injury, Reed even started two games for the Sixers.

One might assume that Reed’s performance in the postseason last year earned him a guarantee to be Embiid’s backup in 2023-2024. However, with a new head coach in the building, Reed seems to believe that a slight role change could be in store under former Toronto Raptors head coach Nick Nurse.

“The goal this offseason is to keep developing and finding ways to get better. I know I got an opportunity this year to play a little four — especially with Nick Nurse,” Reed explained. “Just working on stretching the floor, driving out the corners, just little things like that.”

When the idea of Reed potentially getting some playing time alongside Joel Embiid was brought up, Reed recalled a moment from last season when Rivers tried it out. Although it was a short-lived scenario, Reed is optimistic about possibly gaining more playing time alongside the league’s MVP this upcoming season.

“We did it last season against the Bucks,” Reed said. “Very limited, but I feel like we didn’t look bad. It was hard to score on us. We were getting a lot of rebounds. I feel like we can mess up a lot of teams with that combination.”

Being that Reed’s not viewed as a traditional big in the NBA, he could have an opportunity to be more of a hybrid next season. With Philly’s former primary backup four, Georges Niang, signing with the Cleveland Cavaliers, there is a void behind PJ Tucker. Perhaps, Nick Nurse taps Reed into that role while giving a player like Harrell or Bamba an opportunity to backup Embiid.