While it’s still too early to predict how the Philadelphia 76ers will maneuver around in the offseason, their sheer spending power has raked in big expectations as they attempt to retool the roster around Joel Embiid and Tyrese Maxey.

Touted as the team with the most cap space approaching the summer, the 76ers will have an ample selection of free agents to choose from. But having said that, this franchise is all too familiar with signing that eventually fail to pan out, so it might be in their best interests to avoid these five players at all costs.

1. Gordon Hayward — SF/PF

The 76ers were previously linked to Gordon Hayward before the season began (and its early juncture), and while the Hornets eventually moved him, it was the Thunder that ultimately acquired the former All-Star’s services.

Hayward will enter free agency this summer, but Philadelphia should once again let destiny lapse them on this front. The veteran remains a serviceable role player, but he’s far from a game-changer at this point in his career — something Oklahoma City is aware of given the way they’re utilizing him since the trade.

The soon-to-be 34-year-old can still function as an offensive fastener, scoring on the tertiary and facilitating on the secondary, and his basketball wits and length veer him away from being a defensive liability. Unfortunately, this is a player who has routinely missed huge chunks of seasons due to injury, and considering that his price tag will remain considerable, the 76ers shouldn’t be the haven for him to end his career.

2. Malik Beasley — SG

Milwaukee signed Malik Beasley to a minimum deal, a very nifty and thrifty acquisition for a lethal team who plugged him as a starter all season long. He’s obviously played himself to a subsequent contract well over the vet’s minimum. The Bucks will undoubtedly try to sign him back for next season, but they don’t have his Bird rights, making it a bit tricky to plug him off the market.

Beasley has turned in quite a solid season in Milwaukee, turning in 11.6 points per outing on a blistering 45.3 percent shooting from rainbow country. He’s also been their designated backcourt stopper — a gaping hole left by Jrue Holiday’s trade which net them Damian Lillard.

Nevertheless, it makes little sense for the 76ers to try and outbid their rival for Beasley. Make no mistake, the 27-year-old has been awesome in his role, but he doesn’t solve anything for Philly. Three-point shooting? Buddy Hield’s volume shooting is more valuable. Perimeter defense? De’Anthony Melton could be cheaper.

3. Evan Fournier — SG/SF

Seldom-used veterans are almost always the antecedents of bargain bin deals, and that could very well be the case with Evan Fournier, who finally had his wish of getting out of New York granted before the trade deadline thanks to another sterling destination, Detroit.

Fournier will be a free agent this summer, and his limited showings these past two seasons in similarly limited court time will macerate his price tag. But even as a minimum signing, the 76ers should look away at the first instance that his camp gazes.

Secondary three-level scoring has been the Frenchman’s bread and butter in his career, but his shot has significantly dropped off in the last two to three years — the main impetus behind his ghoulish Thibodeauan benching. He’s a complete non-factor defensively thanks to him being flat-footed on that end, and his relative lack of playmaking pales his value when the 76ers could just try and speak Nicolas Batum out of retirement with a good deal.

4. Otto Porter Jr. — PF/SF

In anticipation of Tobias Harris’ exodus, Batum’s potential retirement, and Robert Covington and KJ Martin’s free agency, the 76ers would have a significant hole in the forward positions. While they are rumored to be chasing a star who snugly fits the position, the team cannot be settle on just one man manning perhaps the most flexible position in basketball.

A veteran that could come cheap and ready to contribute is tweener Otto Porter Jr., who has been a near-MIA in the last couple of seasons. He’s moved on from Golden State after winning a title in 2022, but his presence has been barely felt since.

Otto Porter Jr. in theory has already worked well in practice, but his canvas hasn’t been all that expansive. His yearly injury struggles persist to this day to the point where one can peg his Warriors stint as a miracle, and the 76ers simply shouldn’t covet another player who consistently flirts with the injury bug, notwithstanding theoretical fit. Fans have had enough, and the front office should, too.

5. Patty Mills — PG

If Philly manages to come out successful in their well-documented hunt for a third star, their cap space will capsize instantly, forcing them to tap into the veteran’s minimum market to fill out the roster for next season.

And for a win-now team like the 76ers, even veterans on the twilight of their careers will inevitably have a chance in account of the context of a cap space-sapped team. Depending on what happens with Kyle Lowry vis-a-vis retirement, point guard play could be a position the team would want to bolster, even from just an experience standpoint.

One player who fits that description is Patty Mills, a well-respected veteran who has long carved a career for himself as a backup. However, his glory days in San Antonio (which culminated in a well-revered title in 2014) have escaped him since, and the 76ers should probably look elsewhere if they want a locker room presence who can rise from the bench when needed and actually not just be an old dummy.