Ariel Hukporti’s season-ending Achilles injury has left the Philadelphia 76ers with a hole they cannot easily fill. The bigger issue, however, is not the open roster spot. It is the money attached to it.
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Philadelphia is already operating under a first-apron hard cap. With only about $1.8 million separating the Sixers from that limit, the team cannot simply use its expected Disabled Player Exception to bring in another veteran.
Bobby Marks reported that Philadelphia is expected to qualify for a $1.7 million DPE following Hukporti’s injury. But that exception does little good if using it would push the 76ers beyond their hard cap. Brett Siegel laid out the problem bluntly on X.
“The 76ers, who are $1.8M from their first apron hard cap, won’t be able to use a potential disabled player exception to add another player. Philly can only waive Jabari Walker for cap space to sign someone else or they will need to make a small trade. Significant blow to PHI.”
That restriction could force Philadelphia into a more complicated decision than it expected just days before the regular season. The Sixers currently have 14 players under contract, meaning there is technically room to add another player. The problem is that they cannot simply use that 15th spot on a standard veteran minimum while staying below the first apron. That leaves the front office with a handful of choices.
One of the cleanest ways to create the necessary financial room would be to waive Jabari Walker. The 24-year-old has only $250,000 guaranteed on his contract, so cutting him would give Philadelphia enough flexibility to pursue another player in free agency. On paper, it is a straightforward solution. But currently, it has become much harder to justify.
Walker just showed what he can bring to this frontcourt. During Monday’s 120-97 preseason win over the New York Knicks, he finished with 11 points on 4-of-9 shooting, including 3-of-5 from three-point range. The 76ers star also grabbed 11 rebounds, along with one assist, one steal and one block in 19 minutes.
His rebounding stood out, but the shooting could matter just as much. Walker gives Philadelphia a bigger body who can stretch the floor and contribute on both ends. With Hukporti gone, those minutes suddenly carry more weight. Adem Bona is another factor.
The young center has not participated in training camp because of a left foot sprain suffered during the offseason. That leaves Joel Embiid as the obvious centerpiece in the middle, but his workload has long been something the 76ers have to manage.
Embiid has missed 150 regular-season games over the last three seasons, roughly 61% of the Sixers’ games during that span. That makes frontcourt depth more than a luxury.
The Sixers waived Dalen Terry on July 26 and traded Johni Broome to the Clippers for cash two days later. It was part of the financial maneuvering that helped them complete the signings of LeBron James and Kentavious Caldwell-Pope. So, now there is only so much more trimming Philadelphia can do before it starts weakening the roster it spent the offseason building.
The Sixers do have an easier option if they are willing to look beyond the standard roster.
Two-way contracts do not count toward the salary cap or first apron in the same way as standard contracts. Philadelphia has been considering 7-foot-6 Tacko Fall for that role, although he is currently dealing with a hip strain.
An undrafted rookie is another possibility. A player with zero years of NBA experience can fit within Philadelphia’s remaining financial cushion. But asking an inexperienced player to step into a meaningful frontcourt role on a championship contender carries plenty of risk. The Sixers could also simply wait.
Veteran minimum contracts prorate downward once the regular season begins. By early December, the cost of a minimum deal should fall below Philadelphia’s roughly $1.8 million cushion. At that point, the team could use its open roster spot without making another move.
That may be the safest financial play, but it does not address the immediate concern.