Should Philadelphia 76ers Wheel, Deal, Reel, Or Steal?
The Philadelphia 76ers hold picks at 1, 24, and 26, and by now you are most certainly saturated with what the team will do with that number one pick.
But now for a change, lets ponder what the team might consider doing with late first round picks. I could only come up with these scenarios:
Scenario I: Package the two picks to move up in the 2016 NBA draft.
Scenario II: Trade them for 2017 NBA draft selections
Scenario III: Trade them for an NBA player
Scenario IV: Use them in hopes that some coveted player falls to them
Each of the scenarios are possible in the context of the future of the franchise under the auspices of new president Bryan Colangelo. Ultimately, Bryan Colangelo wants to get out of the business of developing an entire roster up to the NBA standard, and for many reasons that is certainly the way to go.
More from Sixers News
- 3 Sixers players who could help Team USA Basketball
- 76ers 2k24 ratings: 3 most underrated players on Philadelphia roster
- 76ers head coach Nick Nurse bares lofty plans for Paul Reed this season
- Grade the Trade: 76ers swap Tobias Harris for superstar PG in mock deal
- Breaking Down Bombshell Report on Sixers Star James Harden
Part of the issue will be resolved simply by fixing the roster in defining which player serves in which role. 2015-2016 was a season of experimentation and trial runs. Isaiah Canaan is not a point guard, yet he was splitting duties for the role with undrafted rookie T.J. McConnell. While McConnell served well in an interim “patch” basis, he’s still young and learning the game and his teammates around him – which is better suited for a young man coming into the game off the bench.
Part of the issue will be solved simply by starting the season with 15 healthy bodies, as opposed to ten bodies and a petition to the NBA to sign an emergency 16th player.
But the rest of the difference must be made up by the decisions that Bryan Colangelo must make going forward with this roster, with available salary cap space, and with the difficult decision of determining who among the young roster has greater potential on this roster than trade value.
Next: Scenario I
Scenario I: Package the two picks to move up in the 2016 NBA draft.
Of course, this is a simple one. All the Philadelphia 76ers need to do is call teams and move up…right? Well, not exactly.
Any “trade picks for other picks” requires both teams to be motivated to do so, otherwise the deal never happens or the terms will be so lopsided that fans will wish it had never happened. But there are a couple of teams who may have a mid round pick who may be interested in trading back for both number one picks. The biggest challenge is committing to that trade so that both teams feel as though they’ve exited with the greater value.
More from The Sixer Sense
- 3 Sixers players who could help Team USA Basketball
- 76ers 2k24 ratings: 3 most underrated players on Philadelphia roster
- 76ers head coach Nick Nurse bares lofty plans for Paul Reed this season
- Grade the Trade: 76ers swap Tobias Harris for superstar PG in mock deal
- Sixers Podcast: Danny Green returns + James Harden bombshell
The Chicago Bulls sit with a pick at 14, and at that spot they will have difficulty finding a starter. But if they trade back and are patient, they can develop players behind the likes of Derrick Rose, Jimmy Butler, Joakim Noah and Pau Gasol, and they young players can earn some playing minutes and help take the pressure off the starters. Later in the draft is a tough place to find guaranteed value – so the Bulls would have two picks to pull off finding a contributor.
The Detroit Pistons have the 18 pick, and they too are stocked with able veterans like Stanley Johnson, Reggie Jackson, Andre Drummond, Kentavious Caldwell-Pope, Tobias Harris and Marcus Morris. Trading back for two picks could give them a pair of prospects to groom behind that lineup.
The Minnesota Timberwolves have the 5 pick, and although that pick is far in excess of the value of both 24 and 26, the Wolves are in need of young talent as well. By moving back and grabbing both Sixers picks, the trade could happen if the Philadelphia 76ers are willing to chip in with a player of value. Right now, the Minnesota Timberwolves are desperate to find a backup point guard. McConnell certainly fills that bill, and with the 5 pick the Sixers could draft their own point guard of the future.
Next: Scenario II
Scenario II: Trade them for 2017 NBA draft selections
This is another scenario that truly needs the Philadelphia 76ers to find a motivated team to trade picks with. There are several who fit the bill.
Right now the Denver Nuggets sit on a first round pick from the Memphis Grizzlies in 2017. While they already have a few first round picks, they could take an approach to grab as much talent this year, and let the competitive nature of the business deliver their starting lineup. While the pick is a protected pick (1-5), it should convey in the 2017 draft. It came in at 17 in the 2016 draft.
Swarm and Sting
Another team with a curious setting is that of the Toronto Raptors, Bryan Colangelo’s former team. They will get the Los Angeles Clipper first round pick in 2017 (protected 1-14) which could become a bargaining piece if they want to jump into the latter part of the 2016 first round. If the pick comes in the same, that would be a 25 pick in the 2017 NBA draft.
The Utah Jazz will acquire the first round pick from the Golden State Warriors in the 2017 draft. While that pick will likely fall late in the first round, the Jazz could spice it up with any of the three extra second round picks they have in the 2017 NBA draft.
Next: Scenario III
Scenario III: Trade them for an NBA player
There are several teams who need draft help but have no first round pick. Such teams are the Brooklyn Nets, the Washington Wizards, the New York Knicks, the Houston Rockets, and even the Dallas Mavericks.
Of this group, the most obvious team in need are the Brooklyn Nets. But the team has fallen upon hard luck, and are themselves trying to rebuild a team while virtually all of their draft picks benefit other teams. That scenario is all too familiar to Sixers fans.
But the Nets have some young players with some talent, if they wish to gamble a little. A young shooting guard like Bojan Bogdanovic may be a precious player to the Nets, but he is splitting time with recently signed Sean Kilpatrick, and the Nets need picks. The Philadelphia 76ers would be foolish not to consider dealing one of the late firsts for the player who put up 44 points against the Sixers on a career night.
Another team with some potential for trades could be the Washington Wizards. They have a fairly complete starting lineup, but with a bench with mid career veterans, they might be tempted to exchange some pricier vets for the chance at one or two inexpensive rookies to develop.
Both the Dallas Mavericks and the Houston Rockets are curious teams as well. Perched at limbo – playing at or just better than .500 ball, they are too good to get good draft picks and too bad to make noise in post season. While neither a 24 nor a 26 team can fix that this year, it would be a wise strategy to bring in youth to grow while the team works on making a run down the road.
Next: Scenario IV
Scenario IV: Use them in hopes that some coveted player falls to them
Sometimes you just gotta roll the dice and see if Lady Luck is in the mood to deal you a winner. While we know that the likelihood of Bryan Colangelo sitting on both the 24 and 26 picks is remote, it’s still the default scenario. Do nothing to change the course of events and that’s what we end up with.
But how bad could that be? Sure, the Philadelphia 76ers are sitting on the youngest NBA roster in the league already, and with the belief that the Sixers will be selecting at the number one spot, plus welcoming both Joel Embiid and Dario Saric to their debut season in the NBA, there is not much certainty that the Sixers can absorb any more rookie talent onto this roster.
But unless the Philadelphia 76ers are willing to give away far more value than they receive, that may be what they must accept. But they can’t just grab and stash a young prospect in their D-League affiliate, the Delaware 87ers. Other teams have found the Delaware 87ers to be rich in raw NBA talent, and have raided the 87ers on more than one occasion. But there are some scenarios where the team can have it’s cake and eat it too.
If a raw talent like Thon Maker falls to the 76ers at either 24 or 26, the Sixers could revisit Sam Hinkie’s trademark move by drafting and stashing him overseas. In that scenario, the 76ers retain his exclusive NBA rights and free up the roster for more veteran players. Maker does demonstrate major potential given his athletic traits. Playing him at the power forward position where he’s projected would give him a height mismatch over the majority of those players, and he would also have the quickness to beat centers. He’s just too raw to consume a roster spot today.
Another prospect ripe for a draft and stash is 6’7″ wing Timothe Luwawu. Luwawu is another great prospect for the 76ers. He’s a long, wiry build with potential to fill out his frame, similarly to how Nicolas Batum, another Frenchman, gained muscle mass. He’s a wing prospect who can shoot, play defense, and handle the ball while creating for himself. He checks the boxes in all of these categories, and as a European, he holds the potential to be stashed a for a year if need be. Luwawu would be an ideal prospect for Bryan Colangelo to pick and set up for a year or two down the road when the roster begins to settle into cohesion.
Zhou Qi is one of the most interesting prospects because he can be stashed internationally, has 7-foot-2 height and 7-foot-6.5 wingspan, and shoots from the perimeter extremely well. In sheer dimensions, he has an understudy feel to the arriving Joel Embiid. Qi has awhile before he can contribute, because he’s rail thin at this point, but after a bit of seasoning, he could become a dynamic prospect with an interesting offensive profile and the mentality of an anchor on defense. His current situation makes him another ideal prospect to draft and stash overseas for a year or two.
Next: Philadelphia 76ers May Need To Find Lesser of Two Deficiencies
This is a test of Bryan Colangelo’s patience. The NBA knows he has already set the tempo to load up on veterans, and now will reluctantly talk with him to challenge just how urgent that strategy is to the younger Colangelo. If he stands firm, eventually, other teams will come around and offer him true value in an exchange. But if he bites at the first sign of interest, this could be a disappointing off-season.