When the Sixers signed Andre Drummond to a two-year, $10 million contract last offseason, most fans were on board with the move. After all, Drummond became a fan favorite during his half-season with the Sixers in 2021-22 before he got sent to Brooklyn in the James Harden trade.
But just like everything else last season, injuries ruined everything.
Drummond suffered a toe injury that hampered him for most of the year, which led to him averaging only 7.3 points and 7.8 rebounds per game while shooting a career-worst 50.0 percent from the floor. This past offseason, rumors began circulating about the Sixers potentially salary-dumping Drummond to free up more flexibility to sign Quentin Grimes.
Instead, the Sixers stood pat and kept Drummond on their roster heading into the year. They chose…wisely.
Joel Embiid has missed the past four games with right knee soreness, and it’s unclear when he’ll be back in the fold. Meanwhile, Adem Bona suffered an ankle injury against the Detroit Pistons on Friday and is out at least through Thursday’s game against the Giannis Antetokounmpo-less Milwaukee Bucks. That leaves Drummond and rookie Johni Broome as the lone Sixers big men left standing.
With both Embiid and Bona out Monday against the Los Angeles Clippers, Drummond played a season-high 38 minutes and finished with 14 points on 5-of-8 shooting and 18 rebounds. He outdueled Clippers center Ivica Zubac, who finished with only 14 points on 7-of-13 shooting and 13 rebounds in 34 minutes.
The Sixers were the NBA’s worst-rebounding team last season, but they’re more middle-of-the-pack in the early going this year. It helps that Drummond, who is one of the most prolific rebounders of this generation, looks like himself this year after being an injury-hampered shell of himself last season. He’s averaging 3.2 offensive rebounds per game on the season and hauled in five against the Clippers on Monday.
The bigger surprise thus far has been his offensive prowess. Prior to this year, Drummond had never made more than five three-pointers in a single season. He’s already up to seven made threes in 12 games this year—two more than Ben Simmons had across his entire NBA career, no less.
“What everybody’s known for my 14 seasons of playing is getting a lot of rebounds and finishing in the paint. And if I do get a three, it’s like one of those Hail Mary things. If I’m open, I make it,” Drummond told reporters after Monday’s win. “But now I’m getting it in the flow of the offense, and I’m knocking down big shots. Just the confidence. My team believing I’ll make the shot, my coaching staff believing I’ll make the shot, that’s all I really need to be out there and shoot that shot.”
No one will mistake Drummond for the second coming of Karl-Anthony Towns anytime soon, but his willingness to take those shots in rhythm is going to force defenses to adjust how they’re guarding him. He knocked down a big triple early in the fourth quarter to trim the Clippers’ lead from 10 to seven, which helped get the Sixers’ late surge going.
Drummond isn’t going to supplant Embiid as the Sixers’ starting center, but having a backup who can viably fill in as a spot starter is a godsend for a team that’s cycled through unreliable backups for most of Embiid’s tenure. Going from the likes of Greg Monroe, Amir Johnson and DeAndre Jordan to Drummond is a massive upgrade, particularly if he keeps playing as well as he has to start the 2025-26 season.
The Sixers still need a healthy Embiid to have any hope of making a deep playoff run this year. But as last season proved, they first need to focus on winning enough regular-season games to even qualify for the playoffs in the first place. With Embiid and Bona both sidelined, imagine where the Sixers would be had they salary-dumped Drummond this offseason and not signed another center in his place.
Unless otherwise noted, all stats via NBA.com, PBPStats, Cleaning the Glass or Basketball Reference. All salary information via Salary Swish and salary-cap information via RealGM.
