The Philadelphia 76ers had only one power forward rostered for the 2025-26 season — two-way player Alex Reese. With the 35th overall pick, Philadelphia needed to upgrade its frontcourt in a major way and chose Auburn forward/center Johni Broome to shore up the hole. However, with his NBA translation unclear, the 76ers have more questions than answers regarding his fit.
Broome spent five seasons in the NCAA – playing at Morehead State for two years before transferring to Auburn where he’d put himself on the map. This past season, he averaged 18.6 points per game on 54.7% true-shooting, 10.8 rebounds per game, and 2.1 blocks per game. The 23-year-old spearheaded Auburn’s Final Four appearance in April and accumulated multiple individual accolades.
Similar to V.J. Edgecombe, Broome is a tone-setter and will provide much-needed intensity, especially on the defensive end. He’s the type of player willing to do the dirty work, then get in the face of an opposing player to tell him about it. However, these promising intangibles are the only sure thing about Broome’s potential fit in Philadelphia.
Broome's NBA translation isn't a sure thing
The Auburn product has a post-centric skill set that heavily involves back-to-the-basket scoring and sound playmaking when faced with double teams. Listed at 6’ 9 barefoot and 249 pounds, Broome often had the physical advantage at the point of attack, but that’s a luxury he may not have in the NBA. For a player to be an effective post-scorer at the professional level, they must possess the ability to score off the dribble and adequate athleticism – two facets which Brooms lacks.
At the NBA Draft Combine, Broome recorded the third-lowest maximum vertical leap out of 79 participants at 28 inches. Broome will be able to match up against most players his size on both ends, but he may struggle in a league that demands two-way versatility. Due to his flat-footed nature, Broome could get picked on when switched onto a smaller player or defending off the point-of-attack.
However, if there’s anything the NBA requires more than athleticism, it’s perimeter shooting, which is bad news for the 23-year-old. Despite a yearly increase in volume, Broome shot an underwhelming 27.8% from beyond the arc on 2.5 attempts per game last season. Perhaps playing alongside advantage creators like Joel Embiid, Tyrese Maxey, and Paul George will improve his efficiency. Still, with questionable athleticism and poor shooting, Broome could get played off the floor in meaningful games.
How will the 76ers use him?
With such issues, it’s difficult to forecast what role the 76ers envision for Broome next season. Since Broome has intriguing passing ability as a big, he could be impactful in handoff actions and short-roll situations, as we saw during his Auburn tenure. Philadelphia also ranked dead last in rebounds per game last season at 39.8. That’s one of the aspects in which Broome can immediately contribute as he notched a 20.2% rebound percentage – the second-best mark in the SEC in the 2024-25 campaign. Broome also totaled 3.7 offensive boards per game.
It’s safe to say that Broome is far from a sexy pick and he’ll likely have a niche role in Philadelphia, at least for the short term. Depending on the matchup, the 76ers will deploy him at center as someone who can provide intensity off the glass, set the overall tone, and generate offense with connective passing. With Broome’s suboptimal floor spacing, it seems unlikely he’ll be able to play alongside Joel Embiid or Adem Bona. Still, with Broome’s winning experience and gritty mindset, perhaps he can prove me wrong.