With the 2025 NBA Draft being only a handful of days away, the Philadelphia 76ers would be most prudent to have a definite course of action once the annual event kicks off. The front office touts a bevy of options with the third overall pick, but the team’s decision-makers badly need to come to a convincing position before they even place a call from their draft room.
Making a guided inference from what has been reported thus far, it is now far more likely that the 76ers will simply exercise to pick third in the draft outright. Still, it bears noting that this is a Daryl Morey-led 76ers brass, and things could swiftly turn out to be wildly different come June 25 if we’re basing it on the variance in the newsstands lately as regards the draft.
However, it seems like the consensus belief is that the 76ers have already made a categorical decision on which way they will go in the draft, at least from what can be gleaned from what the other rival teams are echoing as of late.
The 76ers are believed to be dead-set on picking VJ Edgecombe in the 2025 NBA Draft
According to Jake Fisher in his latest podcast appearance, most of the teams picking below the 76ers, who are stationed at No. 3, are of the belief that Philadelphia has already firmed up on picking VJ Edgecombe, who has been pegged as the most likely prospect to end up in Philly for quite some time now.
Fischer added that the 76ers are now out on Ace Bailey, who was previously widely regarded as the third-best prospect in this year’s draft class behind Cooper Flagg and college teammate Dylan Harper. This is certainly far from surprising, as Bailey’s camp has twisted draft conventions with their sheer refusal to conduct pre-draft workouts with any team.
Whether a move posterior to a projected Edgecombe selection at No. 3 comes along will remain a mystery until the day of the draft. Still, while definitely not unprecedented, drafting the Baylor standout remains the most sensible and risk-averse move that the 76ers brass can resort to in light of the circumstances.
Edgecombe is inarguably the most athletic prospect this year and packs a clearly NBA-ready skill set. While the 76ers will have to address a looming logjam in the backcourt when they take him as their newest rookie, there is way too much promise with Edgecombe to let him slip to the other teams.
If this rumor holds water, the Philadelphia 76ers should be in for a treat, especially given their impressive draft index in recent history.