Sixers to Sign Former Lakers Center DeAndre Jordan

The Philadelphia 76ers plan to sign former Los Angeles Lakers center DeAndre Jordan for the rest of the season, a source confirms to Sports Illustrated on
Sixers to Sign Former Lakers Center DeAndre Jordan
Sixers to Sign Former Lakers Center DeAndre Jordan /

The Philadelphia 76ers plan to sign former Los Angeles Lakers center DeAndre Jordan for the rest of the season, a source confirms to Sports Illustrated on Thursday.

Jordan, a 33-year-old veteran, joins the Sixers after a short-lived stint with the Lakers. During the past offseason, Jordan concluded a two-year stint with the Brooklyn Nets after getting traded to the Detroit Pistons

As expected, Jordan reached a contract buyout with the Pistons a few days later. Not too long after hitting the open market, Jordan landed with the Lakers.

Choosing the Lakers made sense for Jordan, who is at the part of his career where he's needed for a reduced role on a championship-contending team. Unfortunately, his stint in Los Angeles will go down as a forgettable one.

Not only have the Lakers struggled to hit their stride this season, but so did Jordan. In 32 games with the Lakers, the veteran center averaged four points and five rebounds while playing 12 minutes per game. Eventually, Jordan found himself out of Los Angeles' rotation.

And soon after, Jordan and the Lakers decided that parting ways would be best, according to Lakers head coach Frank Vogel.

"We wish DeAndre well," said Vogel on Tuesday night ahead of Los Angeles' matchup against the Dallas Mavericks. "It's really just a need thing. He gets an opportunity to have a bigger role somewhere else, he felt. We granted that to him. We had the need for more point guard and shooting that we were able to pick up with DJ Augustin."

The Lakers needed a guard, Jordan needed to move on, and now the Sixers need another big to backup their All-Star center, Joel Embiid.

A few weeks ago, the 76ers struck a blockbuster trade with the Brooklyn Nets. Both teams swapped stars as Ben Simmons went to Brooklyn and James Harden came to the Sixers -- but Philadelphia had to give up a little more in the deal, and it cost them a package including their veteran backup center Andre Drummond.

Even though the Sixers have Charles Bassey, Paul Reed, Paul Millsap, and Willie Cauley-Stein temporarily, they prefer to bring on the seasoned big man in hopes he can fill the void of Drummond down the stretch and into the postseason.

Justin Grasso covers the Philadelphia 76ers for Sports Illustrated. You can follow him for live updates on Twitter: @JGrasso_. 


Published
Justin Grasso
JUSTIN GRASSO

Title: Credentialed writer/reporter covering the Philadelphia 76ers for Sports Illustrated’s FanNation Email: JustinGrasso32@Gmail.com Location: Philadelphia, PA Expertise: Reporting, insight, and analysis on the Sixers and the NBA  Justin Grasso is a credentialed writer and publisher covering the Philadelphia 76ers for Sports Illustrated’s FanNation.  Grasso got his start in sports media in 2016 with FantasyPros, working the news desk, providing game-by-game player analysis and updates on the Portland Trail Blazers and the Golden State Warriors. By 2017, he joined FanSided’s Philadelphia Eagles site as a staff writer. After spending one season covering the Eagles as a staff writer, Grasso was promoted to become the site’s Co-Editor. For the next two NFL seasons, he covered the Eagles closely before broadening his NFL coverage. For a brief stint, Grasso covered the NFL on a national basis after joining Heavy.com as an NFL news desk writer. In 2019, Grasso joined the 76ers' beat on a part-time basis, stepping into a role with South Jersey’s 97.3 ESPN. Ahead of the 2019-2020 NBA season, he concluded a three-year stint covering the Eagles and joined the Sixers beat full-time. Grasso has covered the 76ers exclusively since then for Sports Illustrated. He is a member of the Pro Basketball Writer’s Association.  Twitter: @JGrasso_ Instagram: @JGrassoNBA