The evaluation of players continues with the shooting guards available when the Philadelphia 76ers select in the first and second rounds. Due to the fact that point guards were already covered in the first article of this series, progressing to shooting guards only seems natural.
Seth Curry was a revelation for the franchise, especially in the playoffs. Shake Milton had a career-scoring year scoring during the regular season but was a non-factor in the playoffs. George Hill had also disappeared in the postseason as well. While Matisse Thybulle and Furkan Korkmaz can play shooting guard, they were primarily used as small forwards this past season.
While Philly does has Isaiah Joe waiting for a bigger role, they could never go wrong with aiming for another shooter in the draft. It would help if said sharpshooter would have a little bit of size on him as well.
5 shooting guards to watch in 2021 NBA Draft: Chris Duarte
Not only is Chris Duarte one the tallest players on this list at 6-foot-6, but he’s also the oldest at 24 years old. The Oregan product played two years of college ball before declaring for the NBA draft. With his age and level of experience, he is probably one of the most NBA-ready players in this article.
According to Christopher Kline’s second mock draft for The Sixer Sense, he has Duarte going 17th overall to the Memphis Grizzle. Tankathon has the shooting going to the Los Angeles Lakers with the 22nd overall pick. However, there’s a chance he can fall to the Sixers on draft night.
While he’s NBA ready, his age give makes it unlikely that he has any significant amount of potential to improve. That could scare off teams that want a player who has more room to grow his game. That being written, there is plenty to like about his game.
He projects to be a 3-and-D player on the NBA level, but he can score on all three levels if the need arises. Last season, he averaged 17.1 points, 4.6 rebounds, 2.7 assists, and 1.9 steals. He shot 53.2 percent from the field and 42.4 percent from downtown. With Joel Embiid being the franchise player, it’s important to surround him with players that can shoot. If Duarte falls to the 76ers, then he’d be an ideal fit for the franchise.
5 shooting guards to watch in 2021 NBA Draft: Cameron Thomas
If the Philadelphia 76ers want someone who can just fill the box score with the points, then look no further than Cameron Thomas. Thomas averaged 23.0 points, 3.4 rebounds, 1.4 assists, and 0.9 steals. He also converted 40.6 percent of his field goal attempts and 32.5 percent of his 3-pointers.
Efficiency was clearly a problem for the 19-year-old LSU freshman last year. He also showed very little as a playmaker, thus him being listed as a shooting guard despite only measuring in at 6-foot-4.
That being written, he clearly has the potential as a scorer on the NBA level. Tankathon has the shooting guard being drafted by the Houston Rockets with the 23rd pick and Kline has Thomas being drafted by the Sixers with the 28th pick.
In Kline’s mock draft, he wrote how he believes that if drafted by the 76ers, Thomas would be used as a sixth man off the bench to score buckets. I tend to agree with Kline’s analysis there as well just due to how one-dimensional Thomas is at this point in his career.
5 shooting guards to watch in 2021 NBA Draft: Aaron Wiggins
No not Andrew Wiggins, Aaron Wiggins is the next prospect to be evaluated. Aaron Wiggins played three seasons at Maryland and showed steady improvement over those three seasons. He’s also the only clear cut second round pick in this article.
Wiggins has good size at the off guard position at 6-foot-6, so he can develop into a solid NBA defender. He’s also a really good rebounder at his position as well. At 22 years old, Wiggins doesn’t have too much room to develop much more, thus him being a second round pick. On top of that his offseason can be shakey at times.
That being written, he can be developed into a solid 3-and-D wing. This past season, he averaged 14.5 points, 5.8 rebounds, 2.5 assists, and 1.1 steals, while shooting 44.6 percent from the floor and 35.6 percent from downtown.
Kline doesn’t have Wiggins in his mock draft, which is only a first round mock and Tankathon has Wiggins being picked by the Toronto Raptors with the 45th pick. Considering that the Philadelphia 76ers own the 50th pick, it’s possible that Wiggins will be in play when the Sixers are on the clock in the second round.
5 shooting guards to watch in 2021 NBA Draft: Joel Ayayi
Technically Joel Ayayi is a combo guard, but considering he shared a backcourt with projected lottery pick point guard Jalen Suggs at Gonzaga, Ayayi will be a shooting guard for the sake of this article. The 21-year-old shooting guard should be on the Philadelphia 76ers’ radar.
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Surprisingly enough, Kline doesn’t have Ayayi in his mock draft, but Tankathon has him going to the Phoneix Suns with the 29th pick. He’s totally in the range of the Sixers and should be high on the 76ers big board.
Last season, the 6-foot-5 guard averaged 12.0 points, 6.9 rebounds, 2.7 assists, and 1.1 steals. He shot 57.5 percent from the field and 38.7 percent from the 3-point line. He has some playmaking skills which includes an ability to run the pick-and-roll, being a really good finisher around the rim, can post up opposing guards, and is a good team defender.
He could end up being like a Malcolm Brogdon type of guard on the NBA level, if his potential gets fully realized. Especially if he doesn’t have to share the backcourt with Suggs, then Ayayi could be a steal for Philly if he’s there when they pick.
5 shooting guards to watch in 2021 NBA Draft: Quentin Grimes
Last but not least, let me introduce you to Quentin Grimes, shooting guard from Houston. Besides sharing the same first name as my father, Grimes is one of the best shooters in this draft class. His shooting alone should be reason enough for the Sixers to be interested in the 21-year-old sharpshooter.
This past season, he averaged 17.8 points, 5.7 rebounds, 2.0 assists, and 1.4 steals. He made 40.6 percent of his field goals and 40.3 percent from deep on 8.3 attempts. He’s a very similar prospect to Joe who the 76ers selected in the second round last season.
Kline has Grimes going 26th to the Denver Nuggets in his mock draft and Tankathon had the shooting guard going to the 37th to the Detroit Pistons. The 6-foot-5 sharpshooter should be available for Philly if they just want to add another pure shooter.
There’s some really solid shooting guards that should be available for the Philadelphia 76ers in this draft. If they come away with any of these players then this can be considered a good draft by the front office.