Sixers Notes: Korkmaz, Colangelo, Leaf, Draft

Don’t count on seeing Furkan Korkmaz in a Sixers uniform next season, writes Derek Bodnar on his website. The 26th pick in last year’s draft, Korkmaz spent this season playing in Turkey and has a $2MM buyout to leave Anadolu Efes. He would probably spend most of next season in the D-League if he does join the Sixers, which may not be better for his development than another year overseas, plus it would take one year off his rookie contract and push him closer to free agency. The buyout is also an issue because it exceeds the $675K that the Sixers are permitted to pay, along with Korkmaz’s rookie contract of about $1.2MM. Unless Anadolu Efes is willing to renegotiate, Bodner believes Sixers fans will have to wait at least another year for Korkmaz.

There’s more this morning out of Philadelphia:

  • The draft will present Bryan Colangelo with his most difficult decision since becoming the team’s president of basketball operations, writes Keith Pompey of The Philadelphia Inquirer. The Sixers hold the third selection, and there’s no obvious choice if Markelle Fultz and Lonzo Ball are the first two players taken. Duke’s Jayson Tatum would provide much-needed scoring, while Kentucky’s De’Aaron Fox would be a valuable point guard in case the team changes its mind about having Ben Simmons run the offense. Josh Jackson of Kansas and Malik Monk of Kentucky are also considered possibilities. Colangelo said he prefers athletic players with the versatility to handle multiple positions. “If it’s the vision of where we want to take this basketball team, again, talent versus fit is something that we clearly always look at,” he said. “But we’re a young team, the stage where we are. You can’t necessarily choose one or the other. Right now, what we’re looking at is a situation that again the group of players that are available to us at No. 3 is probably going to be able to address both with the same decision.”
  • Georgetown guard L.J. Peak, who recently worked out for the Sixers, was a high school teammate of Jahlil Okafor, notes Jessica Camerato of CSNPhilly. They spent a year together at Whitney M. Young Magnet High School in Chicago, and Peak would like to team up again. He is considered a late second-round pick at best, and Philadelphia holds choices No. 36, 39, 46 and 50.
  • The Sixers aren’t likely to keep all of their second-rounders, Camerato writes in a separate piece. They already have eight players under contract for next season and will be looking for draft-and-stash opportunities if they can’t unload some of the picks.
View Comments (6)