By Brandon Apter, Sports Talk Philly editor 
With the Utah Jazz Summer League in the books, the Philadelphia 76ers head to Vegas and begin that portion of Summer League play on Saturday against Golden State. While it's great to get a look at guys like Markelle Fultz, Timothe Luwawu-Cabarrot, Jonah Bolden and Furkan Korkmaz, there are still plenty of questions surrounding the team roster and how it will shape up leading into Opening Night.
Let's get started as I, Brandon Apter, take a stab at answering some of those questions with reasonable, educated takes in this week's Sixers mailbag right here on SportsTalkPhilly.com…
What do you think happens to Okafor? – Frank
Well, Frank, since we can pretty much come to the conclusion that Okafor is no longer the guy who "rolls out of bed with 20 and 10", Jah's future on the Philadelphia 76ers is probably the biggest question heading into the 2017-18 season.
Looking back at Jah's rookie year, we all pretty much got what we expected. He was a nuisance in the post, muscling for baskets at the rim while also sporting a respectable mid-range jumper. In his first year, the offensive upside sorta covered up his defensive inabilities. In year two, they became glaring as Okafor went from rookie starter to third string center in a matter of months.
With Joel Embiid the Sixers' primary center and the energetic Richaun Holmes off the bench, Okafor is still far down on the big man depth chart in Philadelphia. While many fans want to see him sent away in a trade that brings the Sixers a bag of basketballs in return, Embiid's questionable health history makes me think Okafor will be on the roster when the season opens just to have him as an insurance. He won't get a whole lot of minutes with what the two guys in front of him offer on both sides of the court, but if he is still on the roster, Jah needs to get back to what helped him succeed at Duke (be an offensive bully in the post) and show some progression on defense too, because efforts like this one won't cut it. A trip to the G-League might be something to consider as well to get his confidence up and work on his defense.
One last note on Jah. Can we stop with the hindsight takes about how we should've drafted Porzingis. I looked at ESPN, CBS Sports, Yahoo! Sports, DraftExpress, Sports Illustrated and NBA.com's mock drafts from 2015 and just one of those sites had Porzingis going top-3 and only two of them had him in the top-5. Jah hasn't worked out, it's okay to accept that – but enough with the we could have or should have. Moving on…
What do the Sixers do with TJ McConnell with their now crowded back court? – Josh
If Joel Embiid and Dario Saric are the faces of "The Process", TJ McConnell can't be too far behind on the list. From undrafted free agent to starting point guard, TJ has won over the hearts of Philadelphia fans with his grit and energy on the court and his passion and enthusiasm off the court. For a guy who no one predicted to be a difference maker in the NBA, he really took the reigns and ran with the starting job last season for the Sixers.
All that being said though, TJ's place on the team becomes a question mark with a front court that will include Ben Simmons (on offense), Markelle Fultz, JJ Redick and Jerryd Bayless. The potential starting lineup right now would look like this, I think: Fultz, Simmons, Redick, Covington, Embiid.
That starting five leaves Bayless on the bench along with Timothe Luwawu-Cabarrot as the back court rotation reserves and Holmes, Amir Johnson and Dario Saric filling in the rotational spots in the front court. So there are a pair of bench spots, with TJ in the running along with Nik Stauskas, Jahlil Okafor and Jonah Bolden at the moment. Brett Brown has always been a big TJ fan, so I think he remains on the bench, but inactive more than he'll play. I think Stauskas has a better chance for his ability to shoot the three and if Okafor is on the roster, they should give him minutes as well to try and increase the little value he has at this point.
While it's tough to imagine a guy like TJ on the bench, there's no room for him on the court right now barring injury. He's such a great locker room presence and can bring energy at any time as a reserve, so I think that him staying in Philadelphia over the G-League is more likely, but we may not see him quite as much as 2016-17.
Is Melo Trimble a G-Leaguer at best? – Adam
Former Maryland Terrapin Melo Trimble has appeared in one game in the Summer League with the Sixers this season, scoring three points in 10 minutes of action. In three years at Maryland, he averaged 15.9 points, 3.9 assists and 3.7 rebounds per game. Trimble shot 42.9 percent from the floor and just under 35 percent from beyond the arc.
While it's tough to judge whether he's going to be a career G-Leaguer after just one Summer League appearance, his chances of making the Philadelphia roster seems pretty slim at this point with the few spots they have available on their bench. The Sixers have had the opportunity, due to past injuries, to give G-League players a chance on their roster (Shawn Long, Alex Poythress, Chasson Randle), so if Trimble is with Delaware for the 2017-18 season, he could very well get a look at the NBA if he plays well enough and the Sixers find themselves in need of some more depth.
To answer your question simply right now though, yes he's a G-Leaguer at best at this point in his career.
Will Redick be a one-year rental or a veteran piece moving forward? – Brad
This is a tough one, because I believe it could go one of a few ways with Redick. First off, love the signing. While many think $23 million is a steep price for an aging veteran, being on the books for just a year makes it okay because if it doesn't work out, the Sixers don't really have to worry about anything next offseason. Redick brings the team not only a great shooting option, but a veteran locker room presence for their young shooters (Fultz, TLC).
Scenario one is the one I think plays out in all likelihood. Redick stays for the season, fulfills his contract and in 2018-19, he moves on to play for a title contender. I think the attraction of the Sixers' young core is what made him take a one-year deal, but with the money Philadelphia has to play with next year, I'm not sure they will have a whole lot of room to resign him unless he takes a discount.
Scenario two is how a lot of people view the Phillies Jeremy Hellickson situation. Veteran pieces to have on the roster to eventually flip for assets at the deadline. This seems pretty unlikely thought, since Redick's $23 million is a lot for a team to take on midway through the season and something tells me the Sixers will want his presence around them all year.
Scenario three is he signs his deal with Philadelphia, has a strong season and resigns. I think this has a good chance of happening and if he's affordable on a 2-3 year deal next offseason as a veteran piece moving forward and doesn't get in the way of signing a bigger name free agent.
Are all three foreign draft picks coming over this year? – Rich
The Sixers picked Latvian center Andzejs Pasecniks in the first round before selecting Jonah Bolden (Austrailia) and Mathias Lessort (France) in round two. Pasecniks will be playing overseas definitely next season as will Lessort. Bolden has looked impressive in Summer League play and many believe he has a chance to make the roster. If he doesn't though, there's a good chance he hangs in the G-League with the 87ers.
What's the next "hole to fill?" – Nick
With Philadelphia now armed with a young core that includes Simmons, Embiid, Fultz and Saric, the next hole to fill for this group is a big-name free agent and perhaps a young center in next year's draft. They got their shooters in Redick and Fultz and barring injury, Embiid is their center moving forward. His health makes for a big question mark in the future, though. If Philadelphia plans to lure a big free agent to town, it probably won't be a center considering Embiid's talent, so focusing on that position in next year's draft might make the most sense if Embiid does get hurt again.
I don't think there's one hole to fill necessarily though as they are still figuring out what they have in a lot of guys. This season should be a great way to see who fits and who doesn't and they progress even further into the process' later stages.
