The Philadelphia 76ers are less than a month away from opening training camp in the Bahamas. Over the past week, the 76ers have added four players, with Judah Mintz and Jared Brownridge being the latest, bringing their training camp roster to 20. However, Brownridge was waived earlier this evening and is expected to join the Delaware Blue Coats as an affiliate player.
The Philadelphia 76ers have officially signed and subsequently waived guard Jared Brownridge, a team official told Philly Sports Network. According to the Sixers, Brownridge is expected to join the Delaware Blue Coats for the upcoming season.
Philadelphia 76ers Rumors: Sixers Finalizing Roster; Jersey Not The Only State Hoping To “Steal” Franchise From City Of Brotherly Love
Mintz is a 6-4 combo guard with a scoring mentality who went undrafted in 2024 following two seasons at Syracuse. The 21-year-old showed off his scoring and ability to get to the free-throw line in the NBA Summer League, scoring in double figures three times. He averaged 9.5 points, 1.5 rebounds, and 1.2 steals with shooting splits of 47.6/16.7/79.5%.
Brownridge went undrafted out of Santa Clara in 2017 and has been a G-League lifer. The 29-year-old, 6-foot-3, 3-point specialist has spent his entire professional career with Delaware. Last season, he shot a career-best 41.7% from deep.
Brownridge and Mintz’s deals are Exhibit 10 deals, the same contract Max Fiedler received on September 1. With the waiving of Brownridge, the 76ers now have two open training camp spots. They are likely to fill them and could sign a few more players and immediately waive them as they did with Braindridge.
Mintz and Fiedler will also likely end up with the Blue Coats. It is possible that either player could earn a two-way deal with an impressive training camp. However, Jeff Dowtin, David Jones, and Justin Edwards currently fill those three spots.
May the NBA vacate the City of Brotherly Love?
According to Tom Bergen of ROI-NJ, a week after the city of Philadelphia released the details of the report that called into question the economic benefits of the proposed new 76ers arena in Center City, the state of New Jersey has made a serious pitch for the Sixers to move across the Delaware River to Camden. Bergen added that a Sixers spokesman told him that the team, which would own and operate this transformative multi-purpose arena should they relocate, is taking the proposal seriously.
“We have worked tirelessly for the past five years to build an arena in Philadelphia, and negotiations remain ongoing with city leadership regarding our proposal at Market East. The reality is, we are running out of time to reach an agreement that will allow the 76ers to open our new home in time for the 2031-32 NBA season. As a result, we must take all potential options seriously, including this one.
We appreciate Gov. Murphy and the NJEDA for presenting a thoughtful and compelling vision for the revitalization and economic growth of Camden.
While this offer from New Jersey may shock 76ers fans, it shouldn’t. Bergen said the 76ers have been meeting regularly with officials from New Jersey for a while. Plus, the Sixers already had a foothold in Jersey as their 125,000-square-foot corporate headquarters and practice facility in Camden since the fall of 2016.
Despite this, the 76ers have maintained their desire to remain in Philadelphia. As mentioned, the Sixers have been working on getting a new arena for half a decade. The new arena, slated to be called 76 Place, is part of a $1.5 billion project in the city’s Chinatown.
New Jersey Is Not The Only State To Make a Pitch For 76ers
Pennsylvania Governor Josh Shapiro told The Pennsylvania Capital-Star is confident that the team will remain in Philly, where the franchise has been since 1963.
“The mayor is the lead on this, together with the city council. We’re in direct communication with her office. And I’m confident that the mayor will bring this to a conclusion that works for her, for the council, for the city of Philadelphia, and that keeps the Sixers here in the city.
“To show you just how much the ownership group of the Sixers wants to be in Philadelphia, they plan to invest their own money in building this arena. “They’ve not asked, nor have I offered any state funding for their arena, nor will I, and I believe that Philadelphia is the exact right place for the Sixers to remain, and it’s clear that that is what they want, and I know that the mayor is working toward meeting that goal and keeping the Sixers here and healthy for a long time.
Philadelphia has been the home of an NBA/BAA franchise since 1946. The Philadelphia Warriors, a founding member of the Basketball Association of America, played in the city from 1946 to 1962 before moving to San Francisco. A year after the Warriors departed, the Syracuse Nationals moved to the City of Brotherly Love and became the 76ers.
Even if the Sixers take this offer from New Jersey seriously, much is still to be decided. The upcoming months (12-15) are Crucial as there is the belief that construction will have to at least start in 2025 for a new arena to be open by the beginning of the 2031-32 season. This is important as the Sixers’ lease with The Wells Fargo Center expires in 2031.
New Jersey is not the only state to look to purge the 76ers from Philadelphia. Delaware Governor John Carney, on behalf of the city of Wilmington, has also made a pitch.
“We’re all in,” Carney said in a statement to Axios. “We think there are a ton of advantages to building the new Sixers arena in Wilmington — and we’ll do whatever it takes to get it done.”
Of course, Wilmington, like Camden, is a stone’s throw away from Philly—Wilmington is a little farther away (45 minutes). But Wilmington is home to the Sixers’ G-League affiliate, the Wilmington Blue Coats.
In a social media post, Carney boasted about Wilmington having a huge fan base and no sales tax.
While both Camden and Wilmington are close to Philadelphia, and both places make sense if the 76ers decided to vacate the inner city, I don’t foresee that happening.
The post Philadelphia 76ers Rumors: Sixers Waive Veteran Guard, What Does That Mean Going Forward; Jersey Not The Only State Hoping To “Steal” Franchise From City Of Brotherly Love appeared first on Last Word On Basketball.