Jerryd Bayless says chance to join Simmons drew him to Sixers
The 76ers made it official. The franchise announced the signings of point guards Jerryd Bayless and Sergio Rodriguez on Wednesday. This comes four days after the team signed shooting guard Gerald Henderson.
LAS VEGAS – Jerryd Bayless was presented with an obvious question.
A reporter mentioned to the point guard that one wonders why free agents would come to the 76ers.
"Well in the past, I think that would kind of be the case," Bayless said Wednesday.
Bayless pointed to the franchise's new direction, which he thinks new president Bryan Colangelo has a lot to do with.
"Obviously, they have Ben Simmons," Bayless said. "They have Joel [Embiid], and the direction it's going is something that was really intriguing to me."
The eight-year veteran said Simmons' potential to be great was a major attraction as a free agent. Bayless added that pushing the first overall draft pick in that direction is something he and everyone else on the roster will have to do.
He said centers Embiid and Jahlil Okafor also have the potential to be great.
That led Bayless to sign a three-year, $27 million deal on Wednesday. The team also announced the signing of Sergio Rodriguez to a one-year, $8 million deal. The signings came four days after the Sixers signed shooting guard Gerald Henderson.
Bayless is a solid acquisition, as he can play both guard positions. The 27-year-old averaged 10.4 points, 3.1 assists, 2.7 rebounds and 28 minutes last season with the Milwaukee Bucks. The Sixers will be his seventh NBA stop since he was the 11th overall pick out of Arizona in the 2008 draft.
"I know I can help these guys and I'm just looking forward to helping them as much as I can," Bayless said.
With just a one-year deal, Rodriguez, 30, appears to be a stopgap option until next summer, when elite point guards Steph Curry, Russell Westbrook, Chris Paul, and Kyle Lowry are set to become free agents.
Rodriguez played the last five seasons for Real Madrid. The 6-foot-3, 180-pounder averaged 10.8 points, 5.8 assists and 2.3 turnovers in 24 minutes per game last season. He shot 46 percent from the field and 38 percent on three-pointers.
The Phoenix Suns selected Rodriguez with the 27th overall pick of the 2006 draft before trading him to the Portland Trail Blazers on draft night. He played three seasons in Portland before being shipped to the Sacramento Kings on June 25, 2009. Then he was traded to New York Knicks on Feb. 18, 2010. Rodriguez returned to Spain after that season.
Follow and contact 76ers beat writer Keith Pompey on Twitter @PompeyOnSixers and on Instagram at PompeyOnSixers
