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The Philadelphia 76ers' 2025 free agency period has been a mixed bag.
On one hand, they've added two interesting forwards to their roster in Trendon Watford and Jabari Walker, and didn't even have to pay an arm or a leg to do it, with the former signing for the minimum while the latter agreed to a two-way deal. The former has a very interesting game, with impressive passing to go with a below the rim game, and what he lacks in traditional athleticism and rebounding for the position can more than be compensated for by Jabari Walker, who averaged 7.1 rebounds per game in just 23.6 minutes of action a night during the 2023-24 season.
And yet, the additions of Watford and Walker come with a tinge of sadness, as they will take up minutes played last season by Guerschon Yabusele, who officially signed with the New York Knicks on the taxpayer mid-level exception. Factor in the team's own MLE being effectively held hostage by Quinten Grimes as he continues to negotiate with the 76ers toward a new contract in restricted free agency, and Philadelphia has been left in a holding pattern with no plan to fill out their roster.
Could the 76ers add another large forward in free agency when Grimes signs on the dotted line? Sure, there are plenty of players who can do a thing or two the 76ers need on the cheap, but if Daryl Morey is serious about really upgrading the roster, he might have to instead execute a trade for a legit playoff contender Nick Nurse can trust in the postseason. Fortunately, they have a chance to do just that, as one team's unfortunate setback could become Philadelphia's opportunity.
The 76ers should take a swing for Obi Toppin
What do the 76ers really want from a power forward in 2025? Well, this player needs to be able to shoot, as Joel Embiid always thrives with four shooters around him, switch on defense, and hopefully be a weapon in the fastbreak, where speedy players like Tyrese Maxey and VJ Edgecombe thrive.
Obi Toppin fits all of those boxes to a T, as anyone who watched the 2025 NBA Finals can attest.
Originally drafted out of Dayton eighth overall in the 2020 NBA Draft, Toppin has developed himself into one of the more interesting forwards in the NBA, even if he never became a star like some may have hoped. Standing 6-foot-9, 220 pounds, Toppin came into the NBA as a skywalker with Slam Dunk Contest pedigree, but he's since added a strong outside shot to his resume, nailing 38.3 percent of his outside looks as a member of the Pacers.
Factor in an ascending DBPM, going from a -.8 during his final year in New York to a -0.1 last fall, and adding Toppin to the 76ers' roster could not only replace Yabu's expected role in 2024-25 – minus playing backup center – but provide Philadelphia with some much-needed athleticism in their frontcourt next to Embiid and Paul George regardless of whether he's called a small or power forward in any given lineup.
Had the Pacers won the NBA Championship or just returned a healthy roster, Toppin likely wouldn't be available this summer, as he ranked sixth on the team in postseason minutes per game, but unfortunately, that just isn't the case. Tyrese Haliburton will almost certainly miss the entire 2025-26 season with a torn Achilles tendon, and they already lost long-time center Myles Turner, who signed with the Milwaukee Bucks after a decade with the team.
Would the Pacers be willing to move off of Toppin, who was already a luxury on a four-year, $60 million contract? Considering the team's goals, which appear to be having a gap year before attacking free agency next summer, moving Toppin for expiring contracts and draft capital would be a solid option as Rick Carlisle and company plan for another shot at the title in 2027.
With Kelly Oubre and Andre Drummond opting into their contracts for the 2025-26 season, could the 76ers package the duo plus two second-round picks – the price the Pacers also paid for Toppin – to bring the do-it-all forward to Philadelphia? Considering Indiana's need for another center and an empty calorie scorer who can soak up minutes and buckets during this gap year, a Toppin trade could make sense for both sides.
No one left in free agency is as good a fit as Obi Toppin
So, if the 76ers don't trade for Toppin, are there any power forward options who could fit the bill on the $5.7 million MLE? Well, that depends on what bill Morey is looking to fit, as there aren't any players with the same seamless fit as Toppin.
If the 76ers want playmaking and defense at the four spot, they could always call up their old pal Ben Simmons, who remains a free agent after an underwhelming post-Philadelphia career with the Brooklyn Nets and the Los Angeles Clippers. Bringing Simmons back would certainly create headlines, especially since he's somewhat changed his tune on his run in Philadelphia, but he is notoriously not a playoff closer, which limits his ceiling with the team.
Turning the page from a former 76er to Nurse's former Raptors, there are two forwards who are free agents this summer and haven't been picked up by another team yet, in Chris Boucher and Precious Achiuwa.
Boucher has been linked to Philadelphia off and on for a while now, as he's played well against the team as a 6-foot-10 forward who can play switchable D and shoot a few 3s, but he's been a minus defender for years now and has never really taken a step forward to become a starting-caliber player. At best, Boucher could fill a rotational role in the regular season, but could fall out of the rotation when it shrinks in the playoffs.
Achiuwa also has experience playing for Nurse and was a member of the Knicks during their Eastern Conference Finals trip earlier this year, but he, too, isn't really a needle-mover worthy of a Nicolas Batum/Yabusele-style glow up on the cheap. In his first full season with the Knicks, Achiuwa averaged near-career lows across the board, picking up just 6.6 points and 5.6 rebounds per game on 20.5 minutes per night. Achiuwa doesn't really shoot 3s, averaging just 1.2 shots per game over his 320-game regular season career, and his 30.4 completion percentage highlights why he's become more of an interior scorer.
Could Achiuwa play some four next to Embiid and kick it inside to be an undersized center like Yabusele before him? Sure, he'd be okay in that role, but if Tom Thibodeau couldn't trust him in the playoffs, why should Nurse? Better to stick with Watford or even Walker than spend big on a non-shooting, undersized big.
No, if the 76ers really want to improve their team now without sacrificing their future, trading for a player like Toppin while signing a big, underappreciated wing like Amir Coffey simply makes the most sense to fill out the roster moving forward, as there just aren't enough 3-and-D forwards left on the market to fill a sizeable role moving forward.
