Mar 16, 2025; Brooklyn, New York, USA; Brooklyn Nets forward Trendon Watford (9) drives to the basket against Atlanta Hawks guard Terance Mann (14) during the second half at Barclays Center. Mandatory Credit: Vincent Carchietta-Imagn Images Vincent Carchietta-Imagn Images

76ers’ Signing Keen to Improve Shot

Originally posted on Philadelphia 76ers on SI
By Declan Harris | Last updated Jul 7, 2025 10:50 PM ET

A few hours after the NBA’s free agency window opened, the Philadelphia 76ers made their first move as they signed Trendon Watford to a two-year deal reportedly worth $5.3 million.

Watford makes his move to the City of Brotherly Love off a career year with the Brooklyn Nets, in which he averaged 10.2 points and 3.6 rebounds per game.

Not only did his offensive production hit a high throughout his four-year stint in the league, but so did his efficiency, as he averaged 33 percent accuracy from beyond the arc. While not exactly ideal and not a career-best, it shows that he’s not afraid to take shots from deep, which has been a staple of power forwards in Nick Nurse’s system.

This could be seen not only in Guerschon Yabusele’s play style last year, with the former 76er averaging 3.9 attempts from beyond the arc in each game, but also in Nicolas Batum in the year beforehand, who averaged 3.1 shots from deep.

While Watford only averaged two attempts per game in Jordi Fernandez’s system, he praised his development on his shot from beyond the arc, feeling that he can get off more on the Sixers, given their other distractions on the offensive end of the floor.

“I think I’ve made big-time progress, especially the last two years with my attempts continuing to go up, now it’s just continuing to work on it,” Watford told reporters. “Having three great players that will draw a lot of attention, I’ll be able to get a lot of wide-open shots.”

The Sixers’ new signing realizes that the work isn’t over despite finding his new home, as he looks to continue to keep at it in the offseason ahead of the upcoming campaign.

“Just stay in the gym, keep working on it, and keep getting better year by year,” Watford explained. “That’s my goal, be better than I was last year.”