76ers' Mike Gansey hopes to have patched some holes in free agency

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76ers' Mike Gansey hopes to have patched some holes in free agency originally appeared on The Sporting News. Add The Sporting News as a Preferred Source by clicking here.

It's no secret that the Philadelphia 76ers have been one of the more active teams in the free agency window, completely revamping their roster after a rather impressive postseason run, in which they pulled off an underdog effort in the opening round against the Boston Celtics, before falling short to the eventual NBA Champions, the New York Knicks.

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While the main story surrounding Philadelphia's offseason so far has been the shocking blockbuster trade for Jaylen Brown and the subsequent departure of Paul George, they were a bit busy before that deal went down.

Their first move in free agency was swooping in for Dean Wade, who was coming off a seven-year stint with the Cleveland Cavaliers, one that saw him rise from a member of the bench to someone who'd split time in the starting lineup. He'd also form a bond with the current Sixers' President of Basketball Operations, Mike Gansey, during that time period, and it'd be someone who couldn't have enough praise for him during a recent interview during the NBA Summer League.

What'd Gansey have to say about the 76ers' free agency acquisitions?

When it came to Wade, the 76ers' President of Basketball Operations couldn't be happier to add him to the ranks in the Xfinity Mobile Arena, highlighting his flexibility on the court, as well as his ability to clean the glass on both ends of the court.

"We're really excited about those guys, you know. Obviously, I've known Dean [Wade] a while in Cleveland, and he's kind of that Swiss Army knife, can guard everyone on the floor, and can make an open shot," explained Gansey. "He rebounds, which has been a weakness of Philly the last year."

To Gansey's point, Philadelphia finished in 17th place with an average of 43.6 rebounds, while Wade secured an average of 4.2 boards per night. That stat doesn't sound all too impressive, but when you consider he'd be sharing the court with Jarrett Allen and Evan Mobley during different stretches of the match, the ball wouldn't always be his to gather.

But the former Kansas State star wasn't the only pick up for the Sixers, as they would sign Anfernee Simons to a two-year deal worth $12 million, helping the team add some serious offensive firepower off the bench, something they'd lost as Quentin Grimes and Kelly Oubre Jr walked in the opening days of the offseason.

The scoring numbers weren't what attracted Gansey to adding Simons, but rather his ability to knock down a shot from beyond the arc, something that Philadelphia struggled with last season.

"Then Anfernee [Simons], I mean, we were I think dead last in three point makes, and you know, shot and field goal attempts, three point attempts, so having someone like that, you can bring off the bench and just let it rip, you know, because especially with Joel [Embiid] and [Tyrese] Maxey and Jaylen [Brown], how much attention they're gonna gather, just having someone out there that can really make shots," Gansey stated.

To be clear, the Sixers weren't "dead last" in any of the three-point metrics, but they were in the lower bottom half, ranking 23rd in three-point percentage, 21st in attempts, and 22nd in makes. So clearly it was something to consider fixing in the offseason. Draining a deep make isn't something unusual for Simons, as it's one of his biggest strong suits, shooting with 38.5 percent accuracy from downtown last season.

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