There will always be room for hypotheticals and what-ifs after the draft, and that certainly is the case at the moment with the Philadelphia 76ers.
No, the 76ers did not exactly “lose” with the players they came away with. The team selected VJ Edgecombe, one of the most NBA-ready prospects, with the third overall pick, and went on to add a much-needed big man in Johni Broome, who could compete for minutes off the bench right away. The front office even managed to add Hunter Sallis after he went undrafted, snagging him to fill one of the team’s two-way spots.
There remains a lot of talent in the pool of undrafted players, and one player in particular should have gone to Philly. We’re talking about Payton Sandfort, who eventually found his way with the reigning champions, the Oklahoma City Thunder.
The 76ers will regret not picking up Payton Sandfort from the undrafted player market
The Iowa standout poster modest numbers in his senior year, but that can be tossed up due to his injury concerns. Still, at his best, he is a terrific force from rainbow country and is, without a doubt, one of the best pure shooters in this year’s draft class.
Sandfort, who stands at 6’7”, is exactly the kind of player the 76ers should have lined up for. After all, Philly badly needs three-point shooting and size at the wing position — two things the 23-year-old can bring to the table right away.
Instead, he goes to a Thunder team already teeming with talent on the wings. Oklahoma City is not slowing down anytime soon, and allowing such a dangerous three-point shooting assassin in Sandfort to fall on their laps when they already have Chip Engelland, the premiere shooting coach in the NBA, is way too greedy that it hurts.
It is naturally difficult to pencil in an undrafted player as a sourced of major regret, but the 76ers could have swooped in and brought him aboard, especially since the Thunder did not immediately snag him after the draft ended.
Now, the Philadelphia 76ers are back to the drawing board trying to find an inexpensive solution to address their pressing three-point shooting concerns, which derailed them in the last couple of seasons. Hopefully, the front office ticks this one off their summer checklist; otherwise, fans will see a barrage of bricks on a regular basis once again next season.