When Ariel Hukporti went down and clutched his ankle in the early moments of Philadelphia’s preseason matchup against the Knicks, many basketball fans came to the same grim conclusion. The non-contact injury had all the signposts for an Achilles injury, and the Sixers would eventually confirm a devastating rupture for Hukporti, ruling him out for the 2026-27 season before it could even get started.
Per a team statement:
An MRI confirmed today that Ariel Hukporti suffered a torn right Achilles tendon. The injury occurred during the first quarter of Philadelphia’s preseason contest vs. New York. Hukporti will undergo surgery later today. Further updates will be provided as appropriate.
There was universal sadness for Hukporti, who Sixers players and coaches noted was a source of joy for the team during the early days of training camp.
“I saw him for a little bit during the game and just gave him a big hug,” Nick Nurse said. “He’s been a joy to coach in the short time he’s been here, really a good dude.”
“Such a great guy, such a great communicator,” Jaylen Brown added. “I hope it’s nothing too severe. Huk has been a joy to have, he’s been great in the locker room, it sucks to see a guy like that go down.”
Hukporti had the look of a backup center who could provide Philly with a change of pace to Adem Bona’s high-wire act behind Joel Embiid. The post passing he showcased in their public scrimmage and his combination of size and mobility would have been a nice fit on a team looking to establish a free-flowing offense, a strong connector between high-usage stars. Now, that idea will remain theoretical.
Immediate and long-term concerns
In the short term, the Sixers can try to get through the preseason with the basketball equivalent of rubber bands and glue. The team is hoping to get each of their main players on the floor for at least a couple of games, and the results of those games hardly matter if they lose because they don’t have available bigs to play. But this is a team as reliant on backup centers as any team in the association, thanks to the ever-looming questions surrounding Joel Embiid and his health.
Adem Bona arguably has to leap to borderline starter level to get the Sixers through Embiid-less games and avoid the bottom falling out when Embiid requires in-game rest. He has the athletic tools and effort level to fill that role on a team with high-usage stars, but Bona has myriad problems on both ends of the floor. Poor defensive rebounding and prolific fouling drag down his impact on that end of the floor, and his hands are a major problem on offense, limiting him to lob finishes for the bulk of his offense. Making meaningful improvements in even one of those areas would go a long way, but we haven’t seen him at all yet to gauge his progress (or lack thereof). Bona has been limited by a foot sprain so far this preseason after playing for Turkey’s national team this summer.
Philadelphia is almost certainly going to have to turn to small ball early in the season whether they’re shorthanded or just getting a bad outing from Bona, which might not be the worst thing in the world. Between Dominick Barlow, Jabari Walker, Dean Wade, and even LeBron James, Philadelphia can put together switch-heavy lineups with a forward-sized center that mitigate their lack of rim protection with better mobility and rotations. A grouping like Edgecombe/Caldwell-Pope/Brown/LeBron/Barlow would give the Sixers a good blend of size, point-of-attack defense, and off-ball awareness, for example.
On current form, it could be Walker who emerges as the preferred candidate. He had an excellent preseason debut against the Knicks and has historically been the best defensive rebounder of those bench options. “Can they rebound?” remains an open question regardless of who takes the role, though. And you could see how that problem might rear its head immediately after Hukporti went down, with the Knicks snaring eight offensive rebounds in the first half of Monday’s game before their rotation regulars were fazed out of the game.
Potential replacements
Unfortunately, the Sixers have limited options to replace Hukporti without a trade right now. Although they can get a Disabled Player Exception as a result of Hukporti’s injury, they will remain hard-capped at the first apron as a result of their offseason moves. They can sign someone to a prorated minimum starting in December unless they waive Walker before then, and given what is out there, I think waiving Walker would be foolish.
I will not dress this up for you — the veteran big market is barren. Kevin Love was briefly connected to the Sixers in the offseason, and he wouldn’t be a horrific add to the bench, but a 38-year-old who has never been a good defender is a stretch big play rather than a Hukporti replacement. Bismack Biyombo was on the Spurs for their Finals run but barely played all season. Mason Plumlee is about to turn 37 years old and hasn’t been a positive offensive player in a long time, though he has generally remained a sturdy defender. Xavier Tillman is relatively spry at 27, but has never made shots or rebounded at an acceptable level.
One bit of hope here: two-way spots are increasingly being filled with rotation-level players, so if the Sixers are lucky, they might be able to convince a big man to take their final two-way slot. Maybe that’s Tacko Fall, their Exhibit 10 signing who has been out with a hip issue, or another young-ish big man who doesn’t survive camp cuts. Unfortunately, some of the other fringe NBA players who have been making noise in the G League already signed deals with other teams heading into this season. Oscar Tshiebwe was a dominant rebounder at that level, for example, but the Rockets locked him in on a deal this summer. The Sixers have a more nuanced scouting operation than I do, certainly, and we’ll see if anyone shakes loose as preseason rosters are trimmed.
But anyone who would be legitimately helpful is likely going to be a player they have to acquire in a trade. The hope, frankly, should be that they can delay that move as long as possible, either because Joel Embiid is so good and so healthy that they barely need help or because their alternative options play above their heads for the next couple of months. Being a little light at center was already one of my team concerns heading into the year, and Hukporti’s injury only heightens the creeping feeling of dread.
