Philadelphia 76ers podcast: 2019 NBA Draft preview

By Jack Duffy | Jun 18, 2019

(Photo by Streeter Lecka/Getty Images) /

Jack Duffy and Joe DiProsperos were joined by Ben Pfeifer of USA Today’s Rookie Wire. The podcast includes insight on everything NBA Draft and Philadelphia 76ers related.

The Philadelphia 76ers have five picks in the 2019 NBA Draft — 24, 33, 34, 42, and 54. There are many routes the Sixers can go Thursday, and a wide variety of prospects are on the table. Fans should be excited about the Sixers’ chances to land some talented young prospects.

In this episode, Jack Duffy and Joe DiProsperos were joined by Ben Pfeifer of USA Today’s Rookie Wire. He’s a brilliant draft mind and someone whose insight helped clarify a great deal about the Sixers’ options and the draft as a whole.

The guys started by giving their thoughts on what the Sixers should do at 24. They debated whether or not you should draft for best available or for need at 24. The need for Philadelphia is a perimeter defender, a backup big and a shooter. Most likely with that 24th pick, the Sixers will find one of those guys. They agreed that you draft for need in the second round and named some potential prospects the Sixers could land as well.

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The Sixers do have five picks and there has been talk about them trading two of 33, 34, 42, or 54 to get back into the first round and Ben explained how this year’s draft has a very low talent disparity with prospects and that the Sixers should just use all of the picks in hopes in hitting a home run on one of them.

Ben, Joe and Jack discussed various prospects and went into detail breaking each down throughout the episode, especially ones the Sixers could have a chance at selecting with their picks.

After considerable Sixers-centered draft talk, the guys moved on to more general NBA Draft talk. They discussed the potential for the New Orleans Pelicans to center a package around their fourth overall pick (acquired via the Los Angeles Lakers) and Brandon Ingram for Wizards All-Star guard Bradley Beal. They debated another possible draft night trade centered around Mike Conley and possible trades that could send him to either Utah or Indiana.

The Atlanta Hawks, Phoenix Suns, Cleveland Cavaliers and Boston Celtics have been rumored to possibly trading some of their picks to move back. The guys discussed why or why they should not trade their picks and viable options at those slots.

The best player in this draft is obviously Zion Williamson and he will have the most immediate impact on his team, but the guys discussed other prospects who will also be immediate contributors to their respective teams.

There are a lot of mysteries in this year’s draft due to the minimal talent disparity outside the top three picks, so several prospects have risen and fallen throughout the pre-draft process. Ben, Jack and Joe discussed guys who have been rising and falling and what caused those guys to do so.

The podcast continued with the guys giving their draft sleepers, teams they think will win the draft, potential undrafted prospects that could be solid players, and how the draft will pan out for the prospects that skipped college (Darius Bazley and Jalen Lecque) and if those guys benefitted from that choice and if it will be a viable option for future draftees.

Lastly, Jack and Joe asked Ben his opinion on other draft prospects (was a trend in this episode due to Ben’s supreme draft knowledge) and how they will project in the NBA.

First and foremost, a massive thanks to Ben for hopping on and offering his thoughts on the upcoming NBA Draft. You can follow his work at Rookie Wire, 8 Points 9 Seconds and Clutch Points. You can also get film breakdown of his at Pacers Film Room on Twitter.

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For more draft content on the site, peruse our 2019 NBA Draft Guide. You can also follow the podcast on Spreaker or download/subscribe to it on iTunes, Google Play, Stitcher and more.