76ers sign Caleb Martin away from Heat, put pressure on Knicks as East title contenders

The Philadelphia 76ers aren’t going anywhere anytime soon. That much has been made clear with the offseason acquisitions made by a team re-tooling around Joel Embiid and Tyrese Maxey.

First, the Sixers poached All-Star forward Paul George , prying him away from the Los Angeles Clippers on a four-year, $211.5 million max contract. Then on Saturday, they pilfered Caleb Martin , a tough-nosed two-way wing who leaves two failed NBA title runs with the Miami Heat to join the Sixers on a reported four-year, $32 million deal .

Martin reportedly turned down a four-year, $65 million offer from the Heat to take half as much from Philadelphia. A player who leaves that much money on the table does it for one reason: a better chance to win a title.

The Sixers have that now after their offseason moves, moves that spell potential trouble for the Knicks , who eliminated Philadelphia in six games in the first round of the playoffs — and did so without Julius Randle for that matter — only for the Sixers to undeniably improve their roster to start the offseason.

To take inventory of Eastern Conference title contenders:

• As expected, the reigning champion Boston Celtics gave Jayson Tatum the super max. They also drafted Baylor Scheierman out of Creighton with pick No. 30 in June’s NBA Draft
• The Knicks lost Isaiah Hartenstein to the Oklahoma City Thunder, gave up hefty draft-pick compensation to acquire Mikal Bridges, re-signed OG Anunoby and drafted Pacome Dadiet and Tyler Kolek
• The Sixers finally reached the end of Tobias Harris’ five-year, $180 million contract. They lost Nic Batum, re-signed Kelly Oubre Jr., and added George, Martin and veteran sharpshooter Eric Gordon. They also re-signed Maxey to his five-year max and brought back The Big Penguin, Andre Drummond, to backup Embiid at the center spot
• And the Milwaukee Bucks… are the Bucks: a perennial threat to win the title so long as Giannis Antetokounmpo has two working legs

And then there are the wild cards.

The Cleveland Cavaliers hired Kenny Atkinson as head coach.

The Orlando Magic signed Kentavious Caldwell-Pope away from the 2023 NBA champion Denver Nuggets. They also gave Franz Wagner a five-year max north of $220 million. They are an All-Star caliber point guard away from potential title contention building around franchise cornerstone Paolo Banchero.

The Indiana Pacers, fresh off an Eastern Conference Finals appearance, still have their $12 million mid-level exception and remain a threat to acquire a difference-maker in a trade. They also gave Pascal Siakam a max contract extension, giving Tyrese Haliburton an All-Star co-star for the foreseeable future.

And just when you count the Miami Heat out, they find a way to remind you Pat Riley’s DNA is everlasting, that the team residing in South Beach can be a threat to make a playoff run no matter who is wearing a Heat jersey.

So what can the Knicks do?

Jalen Brunson is a show-stopper. Randle will be healthy to start the season. Bridges brings added continuity and a perfect attendance record. Anunoby returns to pad his best stat: a 20-3 record in regular-season games after his arrival in the trade from Toronto. Josh Hart and Donte DiVincenzo are starters who will now come off the bench. Miles McBride projects to take another step after an impressive leap following Immanuel Quickley’s trade.

Mitchell Robinson and the center position after losing Hartenstein are where things get tricky. Robinson endured not one, but two stress injuries to his left ankle last season, requiring surgery both instances. Jericho Sims is the only backup center left on the roster. The Knicks need more help.

On a related note, the Sixers waived backup center Paul Reed in bringing on Martin. Reed could be an option for the Knicks at the five, even if he was responsible for some controversy when he mentioned the Sixers wanted the Knicks in the first round of the playoffs.

Reed is only 6-9 but can rebound at a decent clip and is coming off of a career year shooting the three at a 36.8% clip on 57 attempts. The Knicks can sign him either to a minimum deal or using their taxpayer’s mid-level exception. They can use the same exception to re-sign Precious Achiuwa, who remains an unrestricted free agent after the Knicks opted against extending a qualifying offer this offseason.

The Knicks could also find a big man available on the trade market. They could also double down on Sims.

They need to do something, because other than the Bucks and Celtics — the two teams who already have titles to show for their efforts — the top of the East is an arm’s race, and other teams, like the Sixers, are beginning to make up ground on the Knicks.