As a sophomore at Arkansas, Isaiah Joe averaged 10.6 3-point attempts in 36.1 minutes per game. Now in his rookie season, the Sixers wing is averaging 9.5 attempts per 36 minutes. While Joe has struggled to see consistent action, he has been exactly as advertised behind the 3-point line. He is who the Sixers thought they were drafting at 49.
Joe is a knockdown shooter who will chuck open shots without hesitation. That skill is consistently underrated in Philadelphia. He can space the floor for Joel Embiid and Ben Simmons, and his quick trigger avoids gumming up the offense. Even Seth Curry, one of the most accurate 3-point shooters in NBA history, can get twisted up in his own mental net. Joe is a no-holds-barred sniper.
Even the most wishful thinker has given up on Joe getting real minutes this season, especially once George Hill returns. That said, Philadelphia would do well to remember how well Joe fits.
The Sixers need more snipers in the Isaiah Joe mold, and he’s a much better defender than anticipated.
Joe has been surprisingly consistent on both ends of the floor this season. His minutes have been sparse, but we have seen a few full games from the 21-year-old. He’s thin, and bigger wings can pose a problem, but Joe has been remarkably savvy at using his 6-foot-10 wingspan to contain drives and interrupt passing lanes.
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As someone who was extremely high on Joe relative to the general NBA Draft community — he was the No. 26 prospect on my big board — even I had low expectations for his defense. If he can translate his strong defensive efforts this season into a bigger role in the future, then Philadelphia may have the steal of the draft.
There is a very good chance Joe is flat-out the best shooter from the 2020 draft. He is also the kind of high-volume, high-confidence shooter who will thrive in Philadelphia’s offense. The Sixers are best when their stars have multiple high-gravity outlets on the perimeter.
Frankly, Joe should probably have gotten a more extensive look from Doc Rivers this season. Furkan Korkmaz has more than earned his minutes of late, but once Dwight Howard returns, the case for Mike Scott minutes is slimmer than Rivers would have you believe. Scott is a net-zero, if not worse, time and time again. Joe would bring much more dynamism to the offense while probably holding his own on defense. The Sixers would lose some size — especially in games against bigger frontcourts when you want Simmons guarding the perimeter — but Joe is part of the Sixers’ long-term plans. Scott is not.
That will not happen, but Joe had a good run in the G-League and he has filled his role admirably in garbage time this season. As soon as 2021-22, I would expect Joe to take on a much more active role with this team. He’s too valuable a shooter not to, especially if Korkmaz leaves in the offseason.