The Sixers have officially signed Gary Clark to a two-way deal, something that was reported on Tuesday.
It’s unlikely that Clark becomes part of Philadelphia’s rotation during the postseason, though that is possible this season due to a change in rules that allows two-way players to be eligible for the playoffs. In the past, players on those contracts were limited to at most 45 days of NBA action and couldn’t participate in the postseason.
Clark has bounced around the league a bit since coming into league in 2018. He was signed as an undrafted free agent by current Sixers team president Daryl Morey back when Morey was with the Rockets. The University of Cincinatti product has spent time in Orlando and Denver since (in addition to being sent to the G League).
Signing Clark accomplishes two things. It gives Morey and the franchise a look at someone who is just 26-years-old and could have a future with the franchise. It also provides depth for Philadelphia at the power forward spot. Anthony Tolliver coming aboard signaled that Morey was looking to provide Doc Rivers with someone in the event that Mike Scott was ineffective in the postseason; Clark is another layer to that but also a potential replacement for Mike Scott long-term (albeit a low-risk, low probability option).
Sixers can’t clinch without Joel Embiid
Philadelphia’s magic number to clinch the top seed in the Eastern Conference is just one and they had a chance at that in Indiana on Tuesday. Joel Embiid didn’t suit up in the contest (neither did Matisse Thybulle or Furkan Korkmaz) but the Sixers had a 16-point lead with Ben Simmons running the show. That didn’t last with the Pacers storming back to win 103-94.
“We gave too much energy to things that we couldn’t really control and things that were over and done with that over the course of the game, just added up,” Harris told FortyEightMinutes and other media via zoom. “I think our mental focus just needed to be a whole lot better in many different ways of just moving on to the next play. That’s an area we can get better at.”
The Sixers have three games remaining in the 2020-21 campaign. They traveled to Miami late Tuesday night ahead of the game against the Heat on Thursday. They’ll play the Magic on Friday at home and then again on Sunday.
