How can big man Dean Wade fit with Sixers, coach Nick Nurse's system?
· Yahoo Sports
LAS VEGAS -- The Philadelphia 76ers were aggressive at the outset of free agency as President of Basketball Operations Mike Gansey and the front office are in the process of building a roster that can take down the champion New York Knicks in the Eastern Conference.
The first signing the team made was by bringing in Dean Wade in free agency. After seven seasons with the Cleveland Cavaliers, Wade signed a deal with the Sixers after averaging 5.8 points and 4.2 rebounds while shooting 36.2% from deep on 3.3 attempts. He is a low-usage player, 9.9% in the 2025-26 season, and that is going to be a huge factor for how coach Nick Nurse uses him in his system.
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"That part of it is really important," Nurse said of Wade's low usage. "I think we do need, with all this, somebody's got to be out there that's just an opportunity scorer, right? There’s something there. They get it. Boom, they do it. And if they're not? If none of those opportunities are there, they don't really care, and they keep still doing all the other stuff, right? That's him."
With the Sixers having higher usage players such as Jaylen Brown, Tyrese Maxey, VJ Edgecombe, and Joel Embiid, they need somebody like Wade who doesn't need the ball and can find his opportunities within the offensive ecosystem. Obviously, the ball will be in the other four's hands more often than not. That gives Wade the opportunity to find catch-and-shoot 3s or cut to the basket for layups. Those types of opportunities will be extremely important.
A big thing Nurse likes about Wade is his ability to do many other things out on the floor. He is an underrated defender for this group, and while he isn't some lockdown defender, he can take on guards, wings, and bigs, and not blink an eye.
"The more important for him, first and foremost, is he rebounds the basketball," Nurse finished. "Got good size, and he rebounds, which we need to get better at, and he's a switchable big. Like, he's a really good defender on multiple-sized players. So, I think it's a really big addition."
The Sixers will have to find ways to make it all work, but Philadelphia is in a good spot for the future with the additionns it made.
This article originally appeared on Sixers Wire: How can big man Dean Wade fit with Sixers, coach Nick Nurse's system?