The Philadelphia 76ers have signed Kai Jones to a 10-day contract as a replacement for Joel Embiid.

During Joel Embiid's ongoing absence, the Philadelphia 76ers are fortifying their center position to support Mo Bamba and Paul Reed. ESPN's Adrian Wojnarowski reports that the Sixers will sign former Charlotte Hornets center Kai Jones to a 10-day contract on Friday.

Jones, initially drafted in the first round of the 2021 NBA Draft by the New York Knicks as the 19th pick, was swiftly traded to the Hornets. After two seasons with Charlotte, Jones made headlines in October with a social media post, since deleted, where he requested a trade. The Hornets waived him two days later, leaving him unsigned for the season until Philadelphia expressed interest.

The Sixers arranged a workout with Jones recently, evidently impressed by his performance. Standing at 6'11", the center has modest career averages of 2.7 points and 2.0 rebounds in 9.1 minutes over 67 games. Nonetheless, Philadelphia anticipates more significant contributions from him.


Following Joel Embiid's sidelining due to a meniscus injury requiring surgery, the Sixers struggled, losing 12 of their last 19 games. As a result, they slipped to sixth place in the Eastern Conference with a 36-29 record, with the Indiana Pacers (37-30) and Miami Heat (35-30) in close pursuit. To secure a spot without the play-in tournament, the Sixers must string together wins in their remaining games.

Philadelphia's next game is against the Milwaukee Bucks (42-24) on Thursday. Jones is expected to officially join the team on Friday, making his debut against his former Hornets teammates on Saturday.

Source : Bleacher Report
Source : Twitter