After scouting Dario Saric, 76ers coach Brett Brown said the No. 12 draft pick is NBA ready.
Will Philadelphia have to put its money where its mouth is?
Before the draft, Saric signed with Anadolu Efes in Turkey for two more years, though he said a jump to the NBA in 2015 is possible.
But now it seems Saric wants to leave Efes much sooner.
Saric’s father, via Jutarnji (through Google Translate)
Many draft picks who aren’t immediately joining the NBA sign a letter stating they’re deferring their arrival in the league. That letter allows teams to clear the player’s cap hold immediately. If Saric signed such a letter, he wouldn’t be eligible to join the 76ers this season.
If he didn’t sign a letter, only the buyout with Efes would stop him from joining the NBA. To retain his rights, Philadelphia must have a standing offer of 80 percent of a rookie-scale contract until the first day of the regular season. There’s a decent chance the 76ers, who had more cap space than they knew what to do with anyway, never had Saric sign the letter. That would leave their options open.
But I doubt Philadelphia wants to add Saric now. At this stage of rebuilding, the 76ers would probably prefer he develops elsewhere while not occupying a roster spot or counting toward the cap. That would allow them to audition another player instead and accept more money in trades.
But if he really wants to come and can get out of his Efes contract, he could accept 80 percent of scale. To dissuade him, Philadelphia could promise 120 percent of scale in a future season.
My best guess: He resolves his dispute with Efes, continues playing for the Turkish club and then joins the NBA in a year or two for the standard 120 percent of scale.