Over the next couple of weeks we will evaluate the Sixers' roster following the 18-64 season. Up next is Thomas Robinson.
Position: Power forward
Status: Unrestricted free agent
Signature game of 2014-15
In his first of four starts with Portland, Robinson scored 15 points and grabbed 16 rebounds in 28 minutes on Dec. 17 in a win over Milwaukee. Robinson could have padded those stats from the foul line, but went just 5 for 15. However, Robinson went 5 for 8 from the field and added an assist, a steal and a block.
Robinson in 2014-15
Traded to Denver and promptly waived at the trade deadline, Robinson was claimed off waivers by the Sixers on Feb. 24. In 22 games with the Sixers, Robinson averaged 8.8 points, 7.7 rebounds and 18.5 minutes. With Portland, Robinson got 3.6 points and 4.2 rebounds in 12.2 minutes per game.
Robinson did not start a game with the Sixers, but was one of the team’s best acquisitions and efficient players. He regularly had games where he got a rebound and a point per minute and grabbed at least nine rebounds in 10 of his 22 games with the Sixers.
Prospectus
The No. 5 overall pick out of Kansas in 2012, Robinson has accumulated the 25th most win shares of all the players in that draft. Moreover, Robinson was selected by Sacramento one spot ahead of two-time All-Star, Damian Lilliard.
In his three NBA seasons, Robinson has played for the Kings, Rockets, Trail Blazers and Sixers. He has been traded three times and waived once. With a past like that, one would think his checkered NBA history would cause some nervousness headed into free agency.
NBA
However, Robinson redeemed himself a bit in his 22 games with the Sixers. He was aggressive and made the most of his playing time. At the very least, Robinson could fill a role off the bench in the Sixers' frontcourt with Joel Embiid and Nerlens Noel with his toughness and rebounding ability.
In the meantime, fitness will be paramount wherever Robinson ends up next season. Sixers coach Brett Brown would have loved to give Robinson more playing time if he thought the forward could handle it. Regardless, Brown got the most out of the few minutes he used Robinson.
On Thomas Robinson …
“I'm tired of getting treated like a rag doll in this league. I just want to prove that I belong here. I'm tired of being treated like I've been treated in this league.”
- Thomas Robinson, March 5, 2015
"I feel sure about the path I want for him. It's a refinement of his game. He has this incredible bounce and passion and energy. Sometimes maybe he tries to do too much or play too fast, or takes that 'reckless abandon' mentality and gets himself in trouble. We just have to tame it and help him grow it. Not handcuff him, just try to refine it.”
- Brett Brown, March 5, 2015
“I just want to be a part of whatever it is they've got going on as far as rebuilding. Nerlens is a superstar-caliber player in the making. Like I said before, many times, Nerlens will be a go-to scorer in this league at some point. What I do is just to feed off guys like that, and do what I do, and bring it to the table. Hopefully, it correlates to what Nerlens does and what Joel does, too, next year, that it can be a good three-man rotation.
“I got a better opportunity to play here, so more came out, and I showed a little bit more of what I could do, obviously. I never felt that [I couldn't play], that's other people's opinion. I can't really take too much thought on what other people think how I'm playing. I just have to keep working, and that's what I was doing the whole time I was at those other places. I never stopped working, even though I wasn't playing. I knew my chances would come one day. I'm not saying it happened already, but it's a start.”
- Robinson, April 10, 2015