It only took one press conference for V.J. Edgecombe to silence the skeptics

With the third overall pick, the Philadelphia 76ers selected the player who they believed was the best available in V.J. Edgecombe. Now that the dust has settled, many are wondering how he’ll fit in Philadelphia, which rosters Tyrese Maxey, Jared McCain, and possibly Quentin Grimes. While Edgecombe’s role is yet to be set in stone, he and Daryl Morey have left fans optimistic following their pressers.

Morey already has a vision for Edgecombe

According to Adam Aaronson of The Philly Voice, Morey believes that the 76ers have one of the best backcourts in the NBA with the addition of Edgecombe. He mentioned the recent trend of multi-guard lineups thriving in the playoffs, but pointed out the importance of having the rim protection of Joel Embiid to level out a potential guard-heavy lineup. Interestingly, Morey specifically mentioned Grimes, who is set to enter restricted free agency, when discussing Philadelphia’s guard depth.

While having such a quality guard variety, a team needs to have a capable rim protector to act as a failsafe defender if a guard gets taken out of an action. With Embiid’s performance level yet to be seen, Philadelphia will need to acquire more front-court talent to round out the roster. Since Philadelphia is financially limited, it will be a challenge to boost its front-court depth with quality players. With the 35th overall pick, the 76ers should look to fill their front-court void by selecting a lengthy, two-way forward.

This one spiel from Morey encapsulated all the important angles of Edgecombe’s arrival with the 76ers. Many have wondered if Grimes has a future in Philadelphia with Edgecombe in the mix since they offer a similar impact. For the moment, it seems that the 76ers are all in on having a loaded guard room.

Edgecombe is ready to contribute

Whatever Edgecombe’s role may be, his mindset heading into Philadelphia should have fans ready to run through a wall: “I hate to see other people score, man…,” Edgecombe said. “I just hate to see other people score… I just do not like to see other people score,” Aaronson reported. That type of intensity is contagious and Philadelphia would greatly benefit from a defensive tone-setter, which it seems Edgecombe will gladly evolve into.

The 19-year-old is also ready to do all it takes to maximize himself on the offensive end of the floor. When asked by Aaronson if there is any specific area of his game he wants to improve, Edgecombe stated he wants to continue to develop as a shooter. He emphasized that doing so will relieve pressure from Embiid, Tyrese Maxey, and Paul George. Edgecombe having a sense of what he needs to do to contribute to winning should make 76ers fans pumped as it’s a quality not every rookie possesses.