World B. Free undoubtedly wins the award for the best name on this countdown. He did sort of cheat, though, as he changed it from Lloyd in 1981. Free had a great career, averaging 20.3 points per game and 3.7 assists. The only reason he fell this far in the countdown was because he wasn’t utilized well by the Sixers, and his years in Philly weren’t nearly as good as his seasons elsewhere.
Although he’s at the end of the countdown here, he would be one of the top members on a list of “best sleeper picks,” regarding the Sixers. The numbers he produced aren’t typically ones you see from a second round draft pick.
Free spent three years with the 76ers, averaging 12.9 points per game, 2.9 rebounds and 3.9 assists. He shot at a rate of 45%, with a nasty pull up jumper. With other teams he averaged up to 29 points. He was no stranger to dishing out the basketball, as 20% of plays with the Sixers with him on the floor were assisted by him in his last year. This isn’t as high as some master assisters, but still, maybe State Farm would’ve given him a call.
World exploded the years after he left Philadelphia. In the two seasons after he went to another team besides the Sixers, he was in the top two as far as scoring throughout the league. I think this could be credited to his usage percentage. This percentage is “an estimate of the percentage of team plays used by a player while he was on the floor,” according to Basketball-Reference.com
Although this statistic wasn’t available with Basketball-Reference until after his first two seasons with Philadelphia, the one year it was available (one of his best statistical years) was his lowest usage percentage year in his entire career.
It’s a shame to look back and see how World was misused by the Sixers, but I still rank him in the top ten as far as draft picks by the team.
Next: No. 9