The Philadelphia 76ers have done a great job drafting for the past two years, ending up with VJ Edgecombe and Jared McCain. Yet somehow, someway, it looks as though they still took the wrong guard in both drafts. For as impressive as Edgecombe and McCain have been—and they have been impressive—Kon Knueppel and Kyshawn George look like the better picks.
Edgecombe went No. 3 to the Sixers, and the Charlotte Hornets took Knueppel at No. 4. Philly drafted McCain at No. 16, and George went No. 24 to the Washington Wizards, so he would have been a bit more of a reach at their draft position.
Philadelphia fans should be thrilled with who the 76ers ended up with. Edgecombe and McCain have a chance to be a part of the next great Philly team. But Knueppel and George could have made the squad just a little bit better.
76ers could have had Kon Knueppel and Kyshawn George
Through the early goings of his rookie season, Edgecombe has been great. A red-hot start to the year has since cooled down, but he’s still putting up solid scoring numbers as the team’s third (or fourth) scoring option.
As for McCain, he’s returned from his thumb injury, which is obviously a good thing, but his shooting numbers haven’t returned to where they were during his awesome rookie campaign.
Both pair nicely with Tyrese Maxey and the rest of Philly’s current lineup, but had the 76ers taken George and then Knueppel, they may be in an even better position than they are right now.
For as great as Edgecombe has been this season, Knueppel has been better. He looks like the new face of the Hornets organization, and he could have been the perfect backcourt partner for Maxey.
Knueppel’s elite three-point shooting would have added another dimension to the 76ers’ lineup, as he’s shooting an insane 42.8% from deep on 8.5 three-point attempts per contest.
As for George, he’s broken out in his sophomore campaign, and, alongside Alex Sarr, looks like the future of the Wizards organization.
His all-around game has blossomed, as he’s scoring, playmaking, and defending fairly well. Plus, at 6-foot-8, he could have potentially played small forward in Philly, though he’s listed as a shooting guard on Basketball Reference.
Drafting both of those guys could have created an elite three-man lineup if Philly had decided to bump George from a guard to a forward.
Again, the 76ers shouldn’t be upset at all. They got two great players in the 2024 and 2025 NBA Drafts. But had they taken Knueppel and George instead of Edgecombe and McCain, they might have been even better prepared for their future with Maxey.