Still a Sixer, Young visits team in Orlando

ORLANDO - Thaddeus Young didn't look or act like a guy who was eager to part ways with the 76ers.

In town for a family vacation, the power forward attended Tuesday night's Orlando Pro Summer League game between the Sixers and the Rockets. Then he joined the team at a shootaround the next morning.

"We did a very, very good job of getting a well-rounded group of players," Young said of the NBA draft. "I really like Jerami Grant and K.J. [McDaniels]. I always liked Pierre Jackson."

No one knows, however, how long Young will be a teammate with those rookies. The team continues to publicly express a desire to keep the 6-foot-8 power forward.

But it's no secret that Young, 26, wants to play for a contender. It's also no secret that the Sixers are content with struggling next season and are far away from being competitive.

Young has some leverage in the form of a player option after next season that would allow him to opt out of his contract and become a free agent. The option also makes it likely that the Sixers will try to trade or sign Young to a contract extension rather than risk losing him for nothing in return.

There are reports that the team unsuccessfully shopped him leading up to the draft.

But he's still around and will sit down with the Sixers this summer to determine his future.

"There's some level of excitement as to what could be," Sixers general manager Sam Hinkie said of Young's envisioning the franchise's future. ". . . I like everything Thad is about. He brings it every day."

Young said he communicates with Hinkie via text messages. He also keeps up with things during his frequent conversations with coach Brett Brown.

For now, he sounds like someone who'll remain a Sixer.

"There's still much more room to grow, and of course, we are one of the teams with a lot of cap space," Young said. "So we have a lot of room to do a lot of things. Right now, I'm just looking and preparing for the future."