​The Philadelphia 76ers are playing the waiting game with LeBron James.With only one roster spot remaining, the Sixers’ offseason is essentially on pause until the 22-time All-Star makes his free agency decision.AdvertisementAdvertisementAdvertisementThe choice to wait for James potentially costed Philadelphia an opportunity to sign an intriguing backup center, Jonas Valanciunas. The 14-year veteran decided to accept a two-year deal with Zalgiris Kaunas in Lithuania rather than continuing his career in the NBA.There’s nothing to support the fact Valanciunas would have chosen to play for the 76ers over the overseas offer, but Philadelphia was unable to even throw its name in the mix.The 76ers’ current center rotation is led by Joel Embiid with Adem Bona and Ariel Hukporti backing him up. This is far from ideal.Embiid missed more than half of the regular season in the 2025-2026 campaign, which left Andre Drummond and Bona to serve as the primary centers. The issue is neither Bona nor Hukporti is established or experienced enough to serve as a starting center when Embiid is sidelined due to injury.AdvertisementAdvertisementAdvertisementBona averaged 4.8 points and 4.3 rebounds in 71 appearances while Hukporti recorded 2.2 points and 2.9 rebounds per game in 54 games.Valanciunas would have solved this issue.He is plenty experienced and remains skilled on the offensive end. He tallied 8.7 points and 5.1 rebounds per game on 58.2% shooting for the Denver Nuggets last season.However, waiting for James is the correct decision by the front office regardless of how many potential minor acquisitions they miss out on in the process. James remains an All-Star-caliber player even at age 41 and has the ability to act as the missing piece for the star-studded 76ers lineup. His playmaking would be heavily utilized at the power forward position while his scoring and defense could be used secondarily.AdvertisementAdvertisementAdvertisementIs it frustrating to lose out on Valanciunas and other potential contributors? Of course, but if James signs with the 76ers, that will quickly be forgotten.Join The 76ersRoundtableHead over to the 76ersRoundtable page and hit the “Join” button at the top of the page… it’s completely FREE! You’ll have the opportunity to engage with other 76ers fans who live and breathe the team, share your thoughts on the organization, and more. If you’re asked to sign up or download the Roundtable app… that’s free too.Anthony Pasciolla is the publisher of 76ersRoundtable. He can be reached via email at ampasciolla@gmail.com or followed on X @AnthonyPasci.