It sounds like the Sixers will have yet another draft-and-stash prospect come over.
Jonah Bolden told the Philadelphia Inquirer's Keith Pompey Thursday that he plans on playing for the Sixers next season. Bolden, selected No. 36 overall in the 2017 draft, played last season for Maccabi Tel Aviv of the Israeli League and EuroLeague. The 22-year-old was a late addition to the summer league roster after receiving clearance from FIBA to join the Sixers in Las Vegas.
"My plan is to come this year," Bolden told the Inquirer. "That was the plan from Day 1 with [former Sixers president of basketball operations] Bryan [Colangelo]. That's still the plan now without Bryan. All respect to Bryan. I appreciated all he did for me. ... But the plan is coming over this next season, 2018-19."
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At his end-of-season press conference in May, then-president of basketball operations Bryan Colangelo said Bolden was the most likely overseas prospect to come over next season. Bolden has an NBA opt-out in his three-year deal with Maccabi, as well as a standard NBA buyout to free him of his $400k deal, per David Pick.
Six days into the free agency period, the Sixers find themselves in a bit of a roster crunch. Even before adding Bolden or inking second-rounder Shake Milton to a deal, the Sixers have 17 players under contract and have to get that number down to 15 by the start of the regular season.
Standing 6-10 with good athleticism and defensive range, Bolden would be an intriguing addition to the Sixers' frontcourt. He has some potential as a stretch-four, but that will obviously come down to how well he shoots it from beyond. He shot just 25.7 percent from three during Israeli League play and 31.9 percent in EuroLeague competition. Overall, he averaged 6.9 points and 5.5 rebounds in 29 EuroLeague games, and recorded 7.7 points and 7.1 rebounds in 22 Israeli League games.
Bolden and the Sixers kick off their summer league action tonight against the Celtics at 7:30 p.m.