The 2026 NBA Draft has come and gone, with Alabama’s Labaron Philon the sole new addition to the Philadelphia 76ers’ roster. The Sixers then picked up team options for Dominick Barlow and Dalen Terry, but there are still a number of slots left to fill in free agency, which opens at 6 p.m. ET Tuesday. One name linked to Philadelphia is 6-foot-9 forward Dean Wade. From Marc Stein and Jake Fischer, “As for Wade: He has a lot of interest around the league but a particular fan in new Sixers president
of basketball operations Mike Gansey, who helped bring Wade to Cleveland as an undrafted free agent. Sources say, to be clear, that there is still a chance Wade stays with the Cavaliers.”
It’s straightforward why the Sixers would have interest in Wade. For one, Gansey comes from Cleveland, where Wade has spent all seven seasons of his NBA career thus far. Wade worked his way up from a two-way contract after going undrafted to a recent three-year, $18.5 million deal. Philadelphia is also thin at the forward spots, particularly so if the organization is unable to come to terms to bring back unrestricted free agent Kelly Oubre, Jr. However, with Philadelphia’s cap space situation limiting the number of avenues towards improving the team, is Wade someone the team should be targeting?
Offensively, Wade is a capable outside shooter, with a career mark of 36.7 percent from three. However, he’s not a high-volume threat, never averaging as many as four attempts per game in a season. Basically, he’s a guy who will knock down open shots but isn’t creating for himself or taking heavily contested looks. He also isn’t doing much of anything inside the arc, taking 73.8 percent of his field goal attempts from downtown for his career, and having under one free throw attempt per game. I view him as a player who won’t hurt you one bit playing off your team’s stars, but isn’t elevating the offense in any sense.
The other end of the court is where Wade provides more value. He is a terrific switch defender, capable of credibly guarding one through five in certain matchups. While he doesn’t create a ton of deflections or block shots, Wade is quick with a 7-foot wingspan, able to stay in front of guys and deter drives and contest shots at a high level. You can throw him in basically any scheme and feel confident he’ll remain a positive connector on the defensive end.
Ultimately, it all comes down to price. If the Sixers are able to obtain Wade for a portion of the non-taxpayer’s mid-level exception, he’s certainly a helpful player to have around. However, there are a substantial number of teams reportedly interested in his services, including a return to the Cavaliers, which may likely serve to drive his contract up in negotiations. I don’t view Wade as a crown jewel in free agency who the Sixers should go to great lengths to acquire as some sort of final missing piece. Despite his connection with Wade, it will be imperative for Gansey to remain impartial and recognize a price point where the juice isn’t worth the squeeze.
