Sure enough, those teams with the strength to win the championship have their own attributes that attract veterans to defect.
Gordon, the Rockets' former sixth man, turned down the $3.4 million player option for next season and left the Suns to become a full free agent. Keith Pompey of the 76ers reported that Gordon will join the 76ers with a one-year veteran base salary of 3.3 million to challenge for the championship with Embiid and Maxey.
In the 2023-24 season, Gordon played in 68 regular season games for the Suns, averaging 11.0 points, 1.8 rebounds, 2.0 assists and 1.0 steals per game, while shooting 37.8% from three-point range.
The reason why the Suns were able to attract Gordon to join is mainly because the Big Three of Booker, Beal, and Durant have good championship prospects, but this team was swept out of the first round of the Western Conference playoffs by the Timberwolves, which naturally did not meet Gordon's expectations, so it was reasonable for him to choose to leave.
As a guard selected by the Clippers with the seventh pick in the first round in 2008, Gordon is now 35 years old and has entered the latter stages of his career. He was the league's three-point contest champion and the best sixth man in the Rockets era, and the Rockets team led by Harden and Paul caused a lot of trouble for the Warriors dynasty. In the playoffs, he is known for his big heart, and can shoot many key three-pointers; Now he chooses to defect to the 76ers, naturally he is running for the championship, after all, he has not had a championship ring in his career, and there is not much time left for him to rush to the championship.
With a top scorer like Gordon, the team's roster has become deeper, and he can be the big brother of the bench, leading his teammates to help the team play better in the transition.
However, if the 76ers want to have the strength to win the championship, they must also strive to recruit George under their command, and he is the key to continuing to improve the team's offensive and defensive capabilities. According to ESPN's Woj, George is unlikely to return, with the Clippers 76ers being the frontrunners for his next home.
I don't know if you still remember that in the 2019 playoffs, the 76ers had a chance to beat the Raptors in the semifinals. That year, he was able to tie seven with the annual champion at the critical moment, mainly because the lineup had strong players like Simmons and Butler, and relied on top-level defense and offense to break the game at critical moments, and George was the best solution that Philadelphia could get at the small forward position.
In the past playoffs, Embiid has not been able to consistently provide consistent scoring when it comes to crunch time, mainly because he is an interior player who has a lot of resistance when receiving the ball. If the critical player is replaced by George, with his top-level strong shooting ability, the 76ers' key shot will become stronger.
However, with the blessing of a star like George, who has both offense and defense, maybe Philadelphia will not have to play with the opponent to a critical moment.