Can Philadelphia 76ers improve via 2018 NBA Draft?

The Philadelphia 76ers rookies are growing and familiarizing themselves with the roster and the NBA. But with six new picks in the 2018 NBA Draft, just how much of a boost can this team expect?

The Philadelphia 76ers fans are about to experience something unique to the team. It’s call the “Law of Diminishing Returns”. It’s a term commonly used in a business setting to describe realizing less benefit despite equivalent input of labor, equipment, or capital.  In NBA terms, it translates into one thing: the 2018 NBA Draft will have less immediate bang for the buck.   And so, fans who have grown accustomed to rampant optimism and enthusiasm will be facing two different and new forces when they begin to scan the upcoming draft.  The team will likely not have a top three pick, and the players selected in that draft will not see much playing time early in the 2018-2019 season.

But, is that a good thing?

Glass paradox

Well, that depends on the individual.  You see, this is a glass-half-empty versus glass-half-full paradox. To understand why this is, let’s break down the current Philadelphia 76ers roster today.

Right now, if all players were healthy, the team has a somewhat balanced roster.  But there are some holes which need addressed, and the obvious solution to round out the roster is to sign veterans who are consistent.

So where are those 2018 holes? Well, we know that Trevor Booker, J.J. Redick and Amir Johnson are one-year free agent rentals for the team. And we know there is an empty roster spot which, if filled, will likely be only for this season. So this team has spots to fill at the front court and wing roles.

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2017 draft class comes first

We know the team has three players stashed overseas: center Anzejs Pasecniks, power forward Jonah Bolden, and small forward Matias Lessort will likely have first dibs on roster spots for the team.  From that point on, it’s anybody’s guess.

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Swarm and Sting

As it currently stands, this team will retain the Los Angeles Lakers first round pick, as well as their own. For today, December 27, 2017, that translates (per Tankathon.com) into the Philadelphia 76ers selecting at 7, 13, 40, 41, 43, and 59.  Could the team improve with those selections? Will the team even retain all these picks?

Barring some free agency magic, the Sixers will likely consider second round picks for draft-and-stash status. That means the team will focus on the first round picks for help.  If you want to look at the list of prospects, this is a great time to turn to the 2018 NBA Mock Draft 2.0 to check out who may be available.  You may see the Sixers target Mikal Bridges out of Villanova at seven, or Kevin Knox out of Kentucky, or even Miles Bridges out of Michigan State.

Second first round pick holds significance

But the more curious pick to me comes with the team’s second first round pick. Should the 76ers fail to make the playoffs (I think they will still), that is a low teen’s pick which will truly define the team going forward. But I believe this team does pull things together.  And we know the trend of Bryan Colangelo so far is to draft international players.   The trouble with the 2018 NBA Draft is that domestic talent is so robust, few international players are showing up in early mocks out of the lottery round.

One such player who falls out of the lottery is Dzanan Musa.  He is already on our radar, so you can bet Colangelo knows all about him. Some mocks have him as high as the lottery round, so he is definitely a player to keep an eye on.

Next: Rundown of the Sixers’ mock draft projections: Holiday edition

In any case, the 2018 NBA Draft is bursting at the seams with talent. But if the Philadelphia 76ers can get consistent three-point shooting developed through the second half of this season, those stars will likely have a year to develop on the bench, and commuting to the Delaware 87ers to bolster their playing minutes.  Don’t look for a big surge next year from the draft. If this team is good enough, rookies will have a hard time finding minutes.