Philadelphia Built a New Center Rotation With Mike Gminski
On January 16, 1988, the 76ers acquired Mike Gminski and Ben Coleman from New Jersey, while the Nets received Roy Hinson, Tim McCormick and a future second-round draft choice. The pick became No. 32 in 1989 and was used on Stanley Brundy. Philadelphia was moving on from a Hinson frontcourt experiment and buying the dependability of a center who had already started regularly for New Jersey. Gminski was the largest immediate basketball asset, but Coleman gave the 76ers another rotation big man. New Jersey received two players ready to join its starting group plus a draft opportunity; neither side exchanged cash as the leading part of the package.
Gminski Became a Multi-Year 76ers Starter
Gminski immediately played and started 47 Philadelphia games after the swap, averaging 16.9 points and 10.5 rebounds, followed by 82 starts in 1988-89 with 17.2 points and 9.4 rebounds. He stayed central to the 76ers interior rotation in 1989-90, when he started 81 games and averaged 13.7 points. The uninterrupted run is why Philadelphia receives an A; the club acquired a starting-caliber player for multiple seasons rather than only a short midseason rental. Coleman appeared in 43 post-trade 76ers games in 1987-88 and 58 more in 1988-89. His contribution was more modest but belongs in the return instead of being overlooked.
The Nets Got Scoring From Hinson but a Shorter McCormick Window
Roy Hinson was far from an empty return. Across his 48 New Jersey appearances after the trade in 1987-88 he started 47 and scored 17.4 points with 7.2 rebounds per game. He also played 82 games for the Nets the following season, averaging 16.0 points. McCormick supplied 47 Nets games in 1987-88, averaging 15.8 points and 7.7 rebounds, before leaving the NBA after that season. Those figures are meaningful and complicate an overly dismissive D+ for the Nets. But Gminski supplied Philadelphia with several full starting seasons, and the pick linked to Brundy did not reproduce comparable team value. The 76ers won on durability, not because New Jersey received no productive players.
Final Verdict
76ers Win. Philadelphia earns A for Gminski’s immediate 47 starts, all 82 starts in 1988-89, and continued frontcourt production, with Coleman also acquired. New Jersey grades D+ in the canonical record despite useful Hinson and McCormick seasons, because its return lacked Gminski’s durability. The No. 32 Brundy pick did not close the gap.