Mo Bamba, Sixers agree to one-year deal originally appeared on NBC Sports Philadelphia
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The Sixers are set to add a 7-footer in free agency.
The team has reached a one-year deal with center Mo Bamba, a source confirmed to NBC Sports Philadelphia on Wednesday night.
ESPN’s Adrian Wojnarowski first reported the news and also noted that the Sixers “intend to keep restricted free agent Paul Reed,” who did a great job as a backup center for Joel Embiid in the playoffs. Last year. Bamba’s deal is for the minimum wage, PhillyVoice’s Kyle Neubeck reported.
Bamba played at Westtown School in Pennsylvania before his only college basketball season in Texas.
The 25-year-old was waived by the Lakers before free agency. He sprained his left ankle in March and ended up playing just nine regular-season games for Los Angeles.
The sixth pick in the 2018 NBA Draft, Bamba began his career with the Magic and averaged 7.7 points and 5.8 rebounds in 266 games. Bamba has a wingspan of 7ft 10in and has consistently blocked shots at a high rate.
He scored a career-high 32 points against the Sixers on January 19, 2022. That night, Embiid was down 50.
“I told him after the game that he wasn’t going to do anything in the second half,” Embiid said. “Not on my watch. But he was awesome. That’s what he does. He’s amazing defensively and then offensively, and-pops great. He still has a lot of potential. He’s awesome.
Bamba has an interesting history with Patrick Beverley, another new Sixer. Beverley said on his podcast that he confronted Bamba in the parking lot after sustaining an ear injury on an elbow from Bamba. (He made it clear that he respects Bamba and has no lingering animosity.)
In February, Beverley and Bamba switched teams in a trade from the Lakers to Magic. They will now get to know each other better as teammates.