The Philadelphia 76ers are re-signing young forward KJ Martin to a two-year deal worth $16 million, according to Adrian Wojnarowski of ESPN. Martin joined the Sixers as a part of the James Harden deal and will stick around after hitting unrestricted free agency.
In 58 games with the Sixers, Martin played 12.3 minutes per game and showcased solid passing out of the short roll, on-ball defense and scoring at the rim. The 23-year-old and son of former NBA star Kenyon Martin is a bit undersized for a forward in terms of height but his strength and athletic burst make him capable of playing all the way down to the center spot in certain times. He provides defensive versatility at the forward spot
Although Martin is a solid player who provides legitimate size and hustle for the 76ers, the structure of his contract makes it so that he can be used in a trade later on.
While paying Martin $8 million isn’t an egregious overpay, the 76ers probably inflated the deal a bit so that they could use it to facilitate a trade later on in the season. Martin won’t become eligible to be traded until January 15, as are all players who sign new contracts in the offseason. Once that date comes along, Martin will surely be discussed in numerous potential trades.
Why KJ Martin's contract could be important for midseason trade
According to cap expert Yossi Gozlan, the 76ers had $19 million in unused contract space separating them from the second apron before the addition of Martin's deal. Since they dodged the extra-unitive second apron, the Sixers should be able to aggregate contracts together in trades and potentially land another high-level talent. Although they still cannot take in more money than they send out in a trade — a restriction of the first apron that they will eventually cross into — having the ability to trade several contracts together is important.
For example, the combined salaries of Martin, Andre Drummond and Kelly Oubre Jr. (roughly $21 million) give the Sixers enough salary money to land Lauri Markknanen, who makes $18 million this season. Of course, it remains to be seen how keen the Utah Jazz would feel about the draft picks that Philly has to offer. Adding a player like the Finnish sharpshooter, though, would be a massive upgrade.
Philly could create roughly $16 million in tradable salaries by combining Martin's contract with Oubre, who also makes $8 million per year, or add Martin with Drummond ($5 million) and Eric Gordon ($3 million). This would put them in the range to acquire the Brooklyn Nets' Dorian Finney-Smith. The second combination seems more likely to happen given how highly the team values Oubre.
With just Martin and Drummond, they could acquire the Charlotte Hornets' Josh Green or Grant Williams or the Memphis Grizzlies' Brandon Clarke. Martin alone makes enough to acquire players like Ayo Dosunmu, Kenrich Williams, Corey Kispert and John Konchar. The 76ers have plenty of trade options along with the possibility of simply keeping Martin around.
KJ Martin could make any trade talks moot by developing his game and continuing to showcase his value to the 76ers. If he doesn’t end up being a mainstay in Nick Nurse's rotation, it seems likely that he will once again be sent to a new team via midseason trade. He's not only going to be signed to an inexpensive deal but is also a player that a rebuilding team may be interested in taking a flyer on.
The 76ers also recently re-signed Kyle Lowry after opening free agency by re-signing Oubre, making a major splash for Paul George and adding Caleb Martin, Drummond and Gordon.
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