76ers Make Key Decision on Dominick Barlow’s Contract

Dominick Barlow has done more than enough to stay in Philadelphia.

That should not be complicated.

According to Jake Fischer, the 76ers are exercising Barlow’s $3.4 million team option, keeping the young forward in place for another season. This will be important, as Philadelphia needs players like Barlow who can do the dirty work for a team. 

Barlow is not the kind of player who needs a major offensive role to matter. That is part of the appeal. He can fit around higher-usage players by doing the work that does not always dominate a box score. He cuts, rebounds, runs the floor, finishes around the rim, and plays with the kind of energy that can help stabilize lineups.

Those are valuable traits for the Sixers.

Philadelphia has plenty of players who need touches. Joel Embiid, Tyrese Maxey, VJ Edgecombe, and Paul George all require different levels of offensive involvement. Barlow does not need the same treatment. His value comes from finding gaps, slipping behind defenders, and turning loose possessions into extra chances.

That role showed up throughout the season. Barlow averaged 7.7 points and 4.8 rebounds in 23 minutes per game, but the numbers only tell part of the story. His usefulness came from how he created those plays. He did not need isolation touches or designed sets. He found space by cutting, crashing the glass, and finishing plays created by others.

A forward who understands how to move without the ball can become useful when Embiid draws extra attention. Barlow developed chemistry as a cutter and interior finisher, giving Philadelphia another frontcourt player who can punish defenses for loading up elsewhere. He is not a floor spacer, and that remains a limitation, but he does enough near the basket to justify getting minutes. 

His teammates noticed the same thing.

After Barlow gave the Sixers the needed playoff minutes, Tyrese Maxey said he was active and “played the right way.” Earlier in the season, VJ Edgecombe called him a versatile player who does “all the little things.” Those comments fit the player Barlow has become: low maintenance, hard-playing, and willing to handle the unglamorous parts of the game.

That is why the team option was worth picking up.

Barlow is not a finished product. His shooting still has to improve, and Philadelphia cannot treat him like he is a star. But at his age, price, and role, he gives the Sixers something they need: a young player who knows how to help without hijacking possessions.

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Wes Dixon is a contributing writer to 76ersRoundtable. He can be reached at [email protected].