The Sixers Should Release Kirilenko

Last night the 76ers won a game in Brooklyn, their 6th win on the season. They're very bad, and this season is going nowhere. The Sixers and Brooklyn made a trade about a month or so ago that sent Brandon Davies to the Nets, who have since waived him, and sent back a second round pick, plus another pick option later, and Andrei Kirilenko. Kirilenko is the controversial part. The 34 year old Russian and the Nets wanted to part ways- the Nets because of their horrible salary cap situation, and Kirilenko because he has no chance to win there. The Nets dealt him to Philadelphia, and Kirilenko had no intention of playing there, and even claims there was a "handshake agreement" to waive him, which the Sixers deny. Now the Sixers have suspended Kirilenko without pay.

I tend to believe the Sixers when they say they never agreed to waive him. They want to trade him at the deadline for another second round pick (I'm only partially joking). Either way, he's got virtually no value at this point, and is causing a stir now. The Sixers really don't need to worry about the fact that his contract is now guaranteed, since they're far below the salary cap floor. They should just get him out, open the roster spot, and then use the spot to fill more payroll. Kirilenko doesn't figure into the future plans, and really doesn't get them anything of value now. They should just move on.