NBA Draft: 5 Players the Sixers Should Avoid

Kevin Kolodziej

Apr 2, 2016; Houston, TX, USA; Oklahoma Sooners guard Buddy Hield (24) reacts during the first half against the Villanova Wildcats in the 2016 NCAA Men

While the 2016 NBA Draft Class certainly has a ton of talent, there are five players that the Philadelphia 76ers should try to avoid selecting.

With the NBA Draft rapidly approaching and trade rumors swirling, it’s anyone’s guess as to what the Philadelphia 76ers’ roster will look like at the conclusion of June 23. And with a countless number of scenarios that could take place draft night, there is only one certainty surrounding the Sixers come Thursday:

They cannot mess up this draft.

The organization has been horrendous on the court over the past three seasons in an attempt to gain the top overall pick. This past season, the Sixers had the worst record in the league for the first time over the past three seasons, and have been awarded the first overall pick for the first time since selecting Allen Iverson in 1996. The 76ers also have the No. 24 and No. 26 overall picks thanks to trades with the Miami Heat and Oklahoma City Thunder.

Dragan Bender, Croatia

Simply put: enough with the big men.

During the past three drafts, the Sixers obtained Nerlens Noel, Joel Embiid and Jahlil Okafor; all of which are 6’11” or taller. Philadelphia got each one of these players with the mindset of taking the best player available and figuring the rest out from there. This year, they’re expected to take LSU’s Ben Simmons (who is 6’10” himself) first overall.

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But after three consecutive horrid seasons, it’s time to start building a team; not drafting more big men strictly based on their level of talent.

While Dragan Bender probably has more upside than anyone in the draft besides Ingram and Simmons, the only way that the Sixers will have legitimate shot at drafting him is if they trade back into the top-10 for a second lottery pick.

And if the Sixers do decide to trade back up, they’ll need to select a guard in order to balance their roster, not take another big-man.

Also, other than the New York Knicks’ Kristaps Porzingis, can you name the last overseas bouncy big-man with an outside stroke that panned out? I sure as heck can’t, but I can tell you that it certainly wasn’t Nikoloz Tskitishvili or Darko Milicic, both of whom had similar playing styles to Bender heading into the draft.

While Bender could very well be a future superstar in the NBA, he’s also a project, meaning he could take a few years to develop into a true NBA player. The 76ers’ fan base has seen too many losses over the past three seasons and this team doesn’t need another project, especially with Joel Embiid and Dario Saric still yet to play a game in a Philadelphia uniform.

Could Bender end up being a great player down the road? Sure, there’s a chance, but the Sixers should pass on him and let another team take that chance on Thursday.

Next: Buddy Hield, University of Oklahoma

Apr 2, 2016; Houston, TX, USA; Oklahoma Sooners guard Buddy Hield (24) handles the ball during the second half against the Villanova Wildcats in the 2016 NCAA Men

Buddy Hield, University of Oklahoma

While Buddy Hield’s draft stock rose tremendously during his senior season at the University of Oklahoma, and he will certainly be a lottery pick, the Sixers should do their best to avoid him.

Thon Maker, Australia

Once a YouTube sensation, Thon Maker hasn’t exactly progressed the way that many scouts projected he would over his high school career.

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While it’ll certainly be tempting for the 76ers to select him with either the No. 24 or No. 26 pick (granted Maker is still available), he’s not the player that this team needs.

He’s extremely skinny, doesn’t have the best basketball knowledge and has a bit of a “me-first” attitude (he displayed this by finding a loophole in the draft which allowed him to become draft-eligible right out of high school).

Maker’s extremely athletic and extremely tall (at 7’1″), but is extremely skinny at just 216 pounds and will need to put on a lot of weight (and fast) if he plans to compete at the NBA level. There’s also talk that he may need a few years in the NBA D-League before playing in The Association.

Again, the Sixers do not need another big man, and standing at over 7 feet tall, that’s precisely the mold that Maker fits.

Sure, he has a ton of upside, but he’s undoubtedly the biggest question mark in this year’s draft class.

And he’s not the player that the Sixers need.

Next: Denzel Valentine, Michigan State Universtiy

Mar 18, 2016; St. Louis, MO, USA; Michigan State Spartans guard Denzel Valentine (45) motions while guarded by Middle Tennessee Blue Raiders forward Perrin Buford (2) during the first half of the first round in the 2016 NCAA Tournament at Scottrade Center. Mandatory Credit: Jasen Vinlove-USA TODAY Sports

Denzel Valentine, Michigan State University

While the value of swingmen has drastically risen over the past few seasons, it just doesn’t make sense for the Philadelphia 76ers to draft Denzel Valentine.

Brice Johnson, University of North Carolina

During his senior season at UNC, Brice Johnson was vital toward the Tar Heels’ NCAA Tournament run, which ended with a loss in the championship game. Without Johnson, it’s hard to imagine the Tar Heels would have made it as far as they did, but that doesn’t mean his game translates to the NBA.

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Sure, he’s a big and athletic forward who can protect the rim well, but he hasn’t shown the ability to consistently defend out on the wing and he also doesn’t have a great outside shot. In today’s NBA, big men need to play effectively both inside and outside, and it might be difficult for Johnson to adjust at the next level.

Listed at 6’11”, he’s a mere twig at just over 200 pounds. He’ll need to add weight if he plans on banging down low with the likes of Jonas Valanciunas and Al Jefferson.

Johnson has similar attributes to former UNC player John Henson (now with the Milwaukee Bucks). Henson is a serviceable bench player in the NBA and has shown flashes of being above-average, but is pretty inconsistent overall, just like Johnson.

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To reiterate, there’s already a number of forward/centers on the Sixers’s current roster. There’s no need for Philadelphia to draft another.

Kevin Kolodziej

A 2011 graduate of Rowan University, I've been involved with the sports journalism industry since 2008. I've since covered high school, college and professional sports for a number of different outlets and I once hit a game-winning shot in a men's league basketball game. Once.