There has been lots of debate (partially because of the lack of any other positive sports news) in the Delaware Valley over the last few weeks about the 76ers’ upcoming NBA draft selections. There have also been varying opinions and radical mock-draft shifts—some of which have no possible way of coming true.
In order to help cut through the misinformation and get Sixers’ fans ready for the June 22nd draft, here are a few “clear-cut” things to know in helping you figure out what Philadelphia will do.
1) Remember Your Needs
- a point guard (or point-forward) who can run the offense
- a guard who can DEFEND the opposition’s point guard
- a wing player who can shoot from the outside & stretch opposing team’s defense
- a lock-down defensive player
After years of selecting the best available player in the draft, the time has clearly come when the Sixers must focus in on filling their biggest needs and not necessarily adding the most talented player available when making your pick(s). You are probably looking at adding at least three players who can fill these needs, which is very important when looking at what the team must do over the next few weeks (and not just in the draft).
2) Careful Evaluation of Your Options
The conventional wisdom is that the Celtics select Markelle Fultz with the first pick and Lonzo Ball (and his controversial father) would head to the Lakers with the second pick. That leaves four most probable players for the 76ers to decide on.
Here’s a scaled-down scouting report from CBS on the first three players most likely to be available:
- Jayson Tatum – can play right away .. quality jump shooter potential .. a multi-positional defender
- Josh Jackson – great defender .. physically ready to contribute … needs a consistent jumper in order to become a tremendous player
- De’Aaron Fox – great speed … true PG .. a jump shot away from being frightening
Notice a pattern? All three of these options are missing one of the biggest needs the Sixers have right now.
Of these three, Fox probably has the most upside and can be the biggest impact. However, 76ers President of basketball operations and General Manager Bryan Colangelo made the rounds on many radio talk shows and podcasts clearly stating that he believes Ben Simmons is unquestionably going to be the point guard—on offense—for his team for the foreseeable future. Unless he’s purely posturing (and he likely could be), selecting Fox would create a log-jam, pitting two of the team’s biggest names at the same position on the floor. However, if you’re willing to NOT have your offense run through Simmons, Fox would add speed and a very strong point guard defender to your team.
Tatum and Jackson are similar players with minor differences and each could enhance your wing players—although not guaranteeing that you’d fill the much-needed role of an outside shooter, which brings us to option number four—Malik Monk.
Monk may be the best pure shooter of anyone in the draft and he would fill one of your biggest needs for a long time. However, Monk doesn’t give you much size, he’s not a great defender and may only be a one-dimensional offensive weapon if he can’t find a way to score off his own dribble. Selecting him with the 3rd pick in the draft would be a reach in a year in which the 76ers MUST take an impact player.
3) The Trade/Free Agent Factor
The 76ers have tried many times to add an established veteran, either through free agency or via trade over the last couple seasons, which virtually no success in adding an established presence. Between not wanting to play in Philadelphia to outrageous financial demands to not finding a good dealing partner, Colangelo and Company have not been able to obtain a standout star to help fill in some of the gaps. If they could add one or two pieces to solve SOME of the above needs, then that would make your first round selection much easier to figure out.
There are a few names out there who I think would vastly improve the team:
- The Clippers’ JJ Riddick ($ 6.9-million AAV) is an unrestricted free agent, a great character guy, a great long-range shooter –not a star–but someone who wouldn’t be overly expensive to add. Would he want to come to a team that’s still a few years away from contending is the issue.
- Denver’s Danilo Gallinari has great size (6’10), is a great-shooter and would be a great “stretch-four” (allowing Dario Saric to be a potent weapon off the bench) and would give you an established veteran presence, but his AAV last year was over $ 15-million and will command even more combined with a long-term deal that might prevent you from adding any other pieces.
- Otto Porter is the youngest of the three names listed here and is an unselfish player who would fit in brilliantly with Simmons, Embiid and whichever star the Sixers would draft. His AAV was under $ 5-million but is a restricted free agent, and my contacts down in the Washington area all would be shocked if the Wizards don’t make a big push to resign him—meaning the Sixers would have to drastically overpay to add him.
The 76ers also could trade away their draft pick, to either move down and get a player like Monk, or package that to trade for another established player—if their front office is willing to go that route.
Only the Sixers front office knows to what lengths they’ll go to add a free agent or two, and what other teams would require in order to obtain that much-needed veteran. If you could unlock that mystery, you would know exactly what Philadelphia is looking to for this year’s NBA Draft.
For more on the 76ers, the DMV’s Markelle Fultz and other NBA issues, check out the latest “SportsTalk” podcast featuring CBS Sports Radio Talk Show Host/Reporter Jon Johnson at rcn.com/atvn/sports-talk
