Who’s the better pick: Timothe Luwawu-Cabarrot or Furkan Korkmaz?
The Philadelphia 76ers did well towards the end of a weak first round last season, adding two players from the international talent vein in Timothe Luwawu-Cabarrot and Furkan Korkmaz. Who has the highest ceiling?
Last year’s draft was, by all accounts, a win for the Philadelphia 76ers. In the midst of what was a genuinely weak first round, they not only came away with the consensus number one pick in Ben Simmons, but also added a pair of international prospects at 24 and 26 — both of whom have NBA relevance.
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While in different capacities, both Timothe Luwawu-Cabarrot and Furkan Korkmaz are quickly becoming integral pieces in the Sixers’ long term puzzle. While they may not boast the same upside as the foremost players in Philadelphia’s core, their rotational value could be important in strengthening out the remainder of Philadelphia’s depth chart. As Korkmaz continues pushing to make his Sixers debut next season, we could see both of them on the floor as soon as October.
TLC and Korkmaz both produce in far different manners, with the former providing a heady 3-and-D wing while the latter could give the Sixers a much needed shooter on the outside. They do have some similarities, though, as both have flashed a higher basketball I.Q. than some may have expected. Both are capable of making the right plays within the confines of the offense, while Luwawu already showed his comfort level within an NBA setup — something many international players struggle to establish during their rookie season.
Korkmaz showed his own improvements this season, albeit overseas. He averaged 10.4 points per game in the Basketball Champions League in Europe, where the Turk garnered “Best Young Player” honors with Banvit — a club he was assigned to for additional playing time. During his 10 game tenure with the squad, he hit on 48.8 percent of his threes.
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Luwawu’s offensive impact differs from Korkmaz in a few key areas. Rather than excelling as a shooter, he uses his off-ball movement to find lanes as a slasher, making smart cuts to the rim and finding his spots on the offensive end. He also is capable of making good secondary passes, displaying much-improved vision off the drive and operating as the type of all-around glue guy that Philadelphia has lacked in years past.
With a long frame to work with, Luwawu’s athleticism is a major tool as well. He gets to the rim quickly, using long, fluid steps to force his way into the paint. The Frenchman also finds success in transition, a facet of the game where he gained ample experience during his time overseas with Mega Leks — a young club that was among the most up-tempo teams in Europe.
As his polish continues to improve and he rounds out his game as a passer, there’s a chance we see him help in shouldering the secondary initiation role alongside Ben Simmons. When you combined that with his versatility on defense from one through three, and he has all the tools to be an invaluable rotational plug for the foreseeable future.
Korkmaz is less nuanced at this stage in his career. While sneakily skilled in his own right, he still has far more weaknesses than Luwawu — not to mention an extremely thin frame to work with. He does have some significant upside, though, as his combination of size and shooting is difficult to find in the latter stages of the draft.
He does well both on and off the ball, working the pick-and-roll on occasion while flashing impressive shot-making potential off the bounce. While his handling isn’t overly clean at this point, he also does well when driving the lane, boasting the explosiveness to finish around the basket and the vision needed to find potential cutters.
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An excellent athlete with plenty of shooting to work with, the remainder of Korkmaz’s development comes down to his ability to fill out his frame and mitigate issues with inconsistency. As he continues to cut down on turnovers and youthful mistakes, there’s a good chance that his ceiling does inevitably fall higher than TLC’s.
Luwawu likely has a more immediate impact in the earlier years of his career, where defense and smart offense allows him to flow well in Brett Brown’s Spursian system. Korkmaz could give Simmons and Joel Embiid another dynamic on the perimeter, though, especially as a scorer.
With this Sixers squad struggling to maintain both efficiency and overarching production in the backcourt during recent seasons, a shooter of Korkmaz’s caliber — who has shown potential in other facets of his game — is the type of piece Philadelphia needs to continue adding. He brings another versatile defender with his frame as well, while his rudimentary playmaking could extend beyond Luwawu’s as a tertiary option for a Sixers team with multiple avenues towards creation.
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I had Luwawu tabbed as a top 10 prospect coming into last season, and his production has matched his expectations well. The fact that they might be able to add an even better piece from that draft class, alongside Ben Simmons, gives the Sixers a chance at one of the better draft hauls in recent years.