Which Sixers are coming back? Oubre, Hield and Payne share their initial thoughts on free agency, originally appearing on NBC Sports Philadelphia
One way or another, Sixers president of basketball operations Daryl Morey is ready for an active summer.
Morey’s 2023-24 Sixers team was full of players with expiring contracts. Now that the Sixers have been eliminated from the playoffs by the Knicks, he will be thinking about all the issues team building opportunities around All-Stars Joel Embiid and Tyrese Maxey.
Free agency is always multi-faceted, but here’s what the unrestricted free agents in the Sixers’ playoff rotation said about their futures late Thursday night:
The Sixers added Oubre in late September on a one-year veteran minimum contract.
He was much better than the typical player on that contract, averaging 15.4 points, 5.0 rebounds and 1.5 assists.
“I just want to be loved,” Oubre said. “I don’t know the business side of it. That’s what I mean, but I can’t tell you what I know because I’m representing myself now. Ultimately, I want to go somewhere where they will respect and love me. Of course it was only love here.
“So at the end of the day, I feel like there’s still unfinished business and a lot of things to be done – a lot of work to get better and get us back here past this hurdle that Sixers fans wanted to get past come. for so long. I feel like I failed because we didn’t get past that.
“I just have to think, talk to my family, sit down and work on the next steps here. But today I’m just enjoying what we’re in right now – this moment, this aura of losing a playoff series – and just using that fire.
Oubre regularly had high praise for Sixers head coach Nick Nurse, who worked to develop the 28-year-old wing’s passing and defensive focus.
“He’s hands down the best coach I’ve played for,” Oubre said. ‘It’s just his cleverness. And he really is a rock star, so I can handle that. And he also coaches me tough. He understands what he expects of me, and he expects me to go out and do it. But I just have to exceed expectations, like I’ve always tried to do.”
During the regular season, Hield played more than any NBA player in 19 years: 84 games between the Pacers and Sixers.
He went on to make three ineffective playoff appearances, remaining on the bench for Games 4 and 5, and gave the Sixers a sensational upset in Game 6 with 20 points and six long-range jumpers.
In February, Morey called him “the best player traded at the trade deadline.”
What would he like from Hield now?
“I’m here now,” he said. “Yes, we didn’t do things the way we wanted, but I would like to be back in Philadelphia. Philly, they traded for me and I feel like they want me too. For me, I look at it like I was late to the party. … Right now, Philly is the priority for me.
‘We’ll see when the time comes. My agent is a phone call away and we’ll figure something out. But if not, I will put my head down and keep working, and I am sure God will open doors for me and for others.”
Embiid had his locker next to Batum’s and spoke in French with the 35-year-old forward. He enjoyed playing alongside the selfless, versatile veteran.
During the Olympic Games in Paris this summer, Embiid will compete for Team USA and Batum will represent the host country. We’ll see what comes next for Batum, who moved from the Clippers to the Sixers in the Halloween James Harden trade.
“I felt this city’s passion for sports, for the Sixers, and I immediately fit in,” he told reporters. “In that first game I came into action against the Wizards and I could feel it. Those fans… when you were booed, I said, ‘Okay, okay. It’s difficult now, so you have to play better.’ This city is not for everyone. They’re happy, I think. I tried my best. … It was fun.
“I’m sorry, guys, that we couldn’t have a better playoff run. You were there and that was great tonight. The support has been great. People in the city were really cheering us on. That was cool.”
Lowry signed a buyout contract in February and eventually joined his hometown team.
The 38-year-old reunited with Nurse, starting alongside Maxey, and appreciated the opportunity to help a young star learn the nuances of running a team.
“We just lost, so I’m not thinking about anything other than figuring out how to sleep tonight,” Lowry told reporters, “because I don’t know if I’m going to be able to sleep with the way we lost the game. . great opportunity to be part of two superstars in this competition and for me it was a pleasure to be around them. We will see what happens in the coming months.”
Traded from Milwaukee to Philadelphia at the deadline, Payne earned his way into Nurse’s postseason rotation with confident, crafty and always energetic play.
He said he “absolutely” wants to return to the Sixers.
“I love Philly,” Payne said. “I think Philly loves me. I like the atmosphere so far. Everyone rocks with me here. I think I set a good tone here, made a good impression. Hopefully I’ll be back. I love this locker room. I like this (cabinet) here. Hopefully I’ll be back.”
Signing Harris elsewhere certainly makes a lot of sense for both him and the Sixers.
After his scoreless Game 6, Harris said he “didn’t really think about” whether he had just played his last game as a Sixer.
During his five-year Sixers contract, Harris played 378 regular season games and 57 playoff games. His 575 made three-pointers rank fourth in team history.
