Kenneth Lofton Jr. gets his chance to fit in with the Sixers

MIAMI — Finding a new team was never a problem for Kenneth Lofton Jr.

Opportunities were there shortly after the post player was waived by the Memphis Grizzlies on Dec. 18.

He had “six, seven offers, and me and my agent sat down and talked,” Lofton said on Christmas morning. “We decided what was the best decision for me and for us as a team.”

So the 6-foot-7, 275-pounder signed a two-way contract with the 76ers on Saturday. And he was with them in South Florida for the Christmas game against the Miami Heat at Kaseya Center. Lofton, a second-year player, could provide some depth with reigning MVP Joel Embiid sidelined with a sprained right ankle.

The 21-year-old said the Sixers have “everything” that makes them a great fit for him.

“They have a great group of guys ... ” Lofton said. ”... I feel like I can fit in, you know, coming off the bench. You know, fitting in as a role [player] and playing hard, go with the games.”

The Grizzlies were forced to waive him because they had to create a roster spot for Ja Morant, who had been suspended for the first 25 games of the season. Lofton averaged 2.6 points and 6.6 minutes in 15 games as a reserve this season.

Memphis initially signed him to a two-way contract after he went undrafted out of Louisiana Tech in 2022. He was the 2023 NBA G-League rookie of the year for the Memphis Hustle.

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But how exactly do the Sixers intend to utilize Lofton?

“We talked,” he said. “I talked to Coach [Nick] Nurse. You’ve just got to come in and develop, see where I’m at, and see how things go.”

Short for his position, Lofton has a similar build to Hall of Famer and Sixers great Charles Barkley. The native of Port Arthur, Texas said he doesn’t try to emulate Barkley or any other player. But he did admit that he grew up watching guard Ray Allen and power forward/center Tim Duncan, two other Hall of Famers.

As a two-way player, Lofton will spend a lot of time with the Sixers’ G-League affiliate, the Delaware Blue Coats. The G-League has played a major role in his development as a player.

He averaged 20.2 points, 10.5 rebounds, 3.9 assists, and 1.2 steals in 17 games last season for the Hustle. Lofton also represented the G-League in the 2023 Rising Stars Challenge during NBA All-Star Weekend in Salt Lake City.

“I learned a lot of things from different players, different coaches,” he said of the G-League. “It [boils] down to getting into the NBA, and it helped me out with development and everything.”

Monday’s game was a homecoming of sorts for Sixers player development coach Terrel Harris. The 36-year-old was a member of the Heat’s 2012 NBA championship team as a reserve shooting guard.

He averaged 3.6 points, 1.2 assists, and 14.5 minutes in 22 games with one start during the 2011-12 season. After being waived by the Heat on Jan. 5, 2013, he finished that season with the New Orleans Hornets.

Harris and Tyrese Maxey, 23, are former standouts at South Garland High School in Garland, Texas.