35-year-old Named Philadelphia 76ers' Biggest Loss

It would be an understatement to say that the Philadelphia 76ers had a brilliant offseason this time around. The Sixers added Paul George, Andre Drummond, Caleb Martin and several others to their ranks this summer while keeping core players like Joel Embiid and Tyrese Maxey.

Unsurprisingly, the 76ers are being considered Championship contenders heading into the 2024-25 NBA season.

That does not mean that the 76ers' 2024 offseason was perfect. It is only natural that some things did not fall their way.

One of them has to be the departure of Nicolas Batum. The Frenchman had joined the 76ers in November of last year as part of the trade centred around James Harden.

Batum proved to be a valuable contributor for the 76ers and averaged 5.5 points, 4.2 rebounds and 2.2 assists in 57 games for the franchise. He averaged 28.3 minutes of action during the playoffs.

He brought so much more to the 76ers than just pure numbers though. As reported by NBC Sports Philadelphia last year, Embiid said about Batum: "He’s special. With the way we play, he just fits everything we need. Great shooter; good defender; great passer; great basketball IQ. He just fits everything we need."

Batum did not end up returning to the 76ers though and instead rejoined the Los Angeles Clippers, signing a two-year, $9.6 million contract with them.

In the article 'Every NBA Team's Biggest Win and Loss of the 2024 Offseason' on Bleacher Report , Dan Favale named Batum as the 76ers' biggest loss.

Favale wrote: "Batum's connective passing and smarter-with-age defense would have served this version of the Sixers extremely well. Losing him sucks, but it's made easier knowing they couldn't have kept him. His Bird rights needed to be renounced to facilitate the cap-space play, and he returned to the Los Angeles Clippers on an average annual salary that surpassed the room exception Philly gave Kelly Oubre Jr. as well as the money it offered Martin."

Of course, that is just part and parcel of basketball. You can never have every player you want on the same team. That's what makes roster building interesting.

It is safe to say that the 76ers have put together a great roster this summer. Now, it is down to the coaching staff and the players to deliver on the court and make those Championship predictions come true.

Related: 76ers Rookie Makes Surprising Joel Embiid Admission