When Will Anthony Tolliver Make His 76ers Debut?
As the Philadelphia 76ers prepared for the second night of a back-to-back in Oklahoma City, the Sixers' front office added another player to the roster. A little over a week since waiving Ignas Brazdeikis and clearing up a spot, the 76ers inked veteran forward Anthony Tolliver to a 10-day contract.
The Sixers didn't make the signing official until Monday afternoon. As the 76ers geared up for yet, another road matchup against the Dallas Mavericks, team President of Basketball Operations Daryl Morey got Tolliver to put pen to paper in Philly.
As expected, Tolliver didn't suit up for the Sixers on Monday night as he wasn't with the team. According to a team source, the plan was for Tolliver to link up with the team when the Sixers return from the current four-game road trip, which ended with a win in Dallas on Monday.
Now, the Sixers are home and taking an off day on Tuesday before returning to the Wells Fargo Center for a Wednesday night matchup against the Brooklyn Nets. Tolliver will more than likely suit up for the Sixers on Wednesday, but the chances of him actually acquiring any minutes seems doubtful.
On Saturday night, when discussing the signing, Sixers head coach Doc Rivers made it clear it's going to be difficult to find minutes for the veteran power forward. Considering the Sixers already have a ten-man rotation and an eleventh guy with the injured George Hill on deck and ready to debut, there's a lot of cooks in the kitchen.
“I don’t know about minutes unless you want me to bench Tobias (Harris) or somebody like that,” Rivers said this past Saturday night. “[He'll be] Just joining the team hopefully soon, and I don’t even know that answer. Maybe in Dallas and if not, probably right when we return home.”
Considering the Sixers are set to face their Eastern Conference number one contender, the Brooklyn Nets, Philly won't have a lot of time to experiment with the new guy in the lineup -- especially since he hasn't practiced with the team. Tolliver might be on Philly's bench as early as Wednesday night, but the chances of him making a debut seems slim right now.
Justin Grasso covers the Philadelphia 76ers for Sports Illustrated. You can follow him for live updates on Twitter: @JGrasso_ & Instagram: @JGrassoNBA.