2015 NBA Draft: Philadelphia 76ers' Biggest Needs
Another NBA draft, another slew of picks in hand for the Philadelphia 76ers.
General manager Sam Hinkie and company enter the 2015 offseason still deep in the rebuilding phase of the team's quest for resurgence in the Eastern Conference. There are several holes to fill, and fortunately, the club has six selections with which to pick, stash and trade assets. The club is armed with the third, 35th, 37th, 47th, 58th and 60th slots.
Joel Embiid and Nerlens Noel represent versatile foundational pieces for the frontcourt, and Croatian draftee Dario Saric should eventually bring playmaking to the 3 and 4 spots. But outside of those promising youngsters, the rest of the long-term rotation is wanting for talent.
The squad needs a serious infusion of firepower to improve upon its paltry 92 points per game from 2014-15. Philly could keep a few of its current slashers and wings, but the roster is likely to continue transforming through the summer and into next season.
What are the Sixers' most pressing needs entering the 2015 draft, and who are some candidates to improve those deficiencies?
NBA-Readiness off the Bench
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While this isn't a specific positional or categorical need, the 76ers could use an influx of experience, toughness and NBA-readiness in its rotation.
This is such a young team, so every little bit of wisdom and assertiveness helps. As the team moves toward legitimate playoff contention in the next couple of years, they're going to need maturity and steadiness in the locker room and on the court.
Hinkie's best bet to find toughness and savvy would probably be in a veteran free-agent enforcer, but he can at least hunt for some NBA-ready upperclassmen in the draft.
A couple of marquee-program leaders stand out as quality second-round choices for coach Brett Brown's rotation.
Rakeem Christmas from Syracuse would supply toughness, low-post offense and mid-range shooting in addition to agile defense. He improved exponentially from his junior to senior seasons, and then he stood out during NBA combine scrimmages (20 points and six rebounds on May 14, and 19 points and six rebounds on May 15).
Christmas doesn't have a high ceiling, but he'd lend minutes off the bench at the 4 or 5 spot and thrive in a variety of offensive sets.
UCLA senior Norman Powell could be a terrific second-round steal to help bolster the Sixers backcourt. His length, strength and aggressive nature would fit magnificently with Philly's defensive ranginess and fast-paced style. CBS Sports' Sam Vecenie notes he "could develop into a three-and-D plus transition guy" for the Sixers.
3. Stretch 4
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In order to give its offense some breathing room and driving seams, Philadelphia should aim to enhance the shooting prowess of its frontcourt.
Embiid has a nice mid-range stroke out to 15-20 feet, but the Sixers won't want him spending all his time away from the basket. He'll likely play center more often than not.
Meanwhile, Noel is not a reliable shooter, and he's not the best option to play at the 4 alongside Embiid. B/R's Dan Favale explains:
"Playing Nerlens Noel and Joel Embiid together would sound good in theory if it didn't seem destined to look ugly in practice. Noel is not an ideal power forward in today's NBA. He was a minus-3.4 in player efficiency rating at the 4 as a rookie, compared to a plus-6.8 at center. He shot just 26.3 percent outside eight feet as well.
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While Dario Saric could ultimately be a stretch 4 type of player, he's also going to be a playmaking 3-man. And it never hurts to add shooting depth to the frontcourt, so the Sixers could look for a shooting power forward in this draft.
What are their options? At No. 3, they could swing for the fences with Latvian 7-footer Kristaps Porzingis. He has as much upside as anyone in this draft class outside of Karl-Anthony Towns, and his three-point delivery is already silky-smooth.
Outside of the third pick, their second-round dark-horse option is LSU forward Jarell Martin. The 6'9" sophomore shot just 31 percent from three-land during his time with the Tigers, but he didn't provide a substantial sample size. His mechanics and fluidity from the perimeter suggest improvement.
2. Wing Shooting
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Brett Brown's squad was not bashful about hoisting triples throughout 2014-15. That is not necessarily a bad thing at all.
But when you collectively connect at a 32 percent clip, it severely hinders the overall production, and it also doesn't keep defenses honest. That's what happened to the Sixers last season, and they ranked 29th in three-point shooting.
They need to colossally boost that long-range efficiency in order to maximize the effectiveness of their frontcourt weapons. A sweet-shooting 2-guard or swingman would be a nice addition, whether they get one in the draft or free agency.
As we mentioned in May, Justise Winslow is probably the only wing worth gambling on at No. 3. It's not the most likely pairing (as we'll discuss in the next slide), but it's a possibility.
He has the size and agility to play small forward and spend time at shooting guard. Winslow is not an exceptionally advanced ball-handler—however, he's a capable slasher. And as for filling the shooting needs, he's a solid catch-and-shoot threat who drilled 42 percent of his treys at Duke.
If Philly wants to use one of its early second-round picks on a shooter, they could look overseas.
Aleksandar Vezenkov of Cyprus is a southpaw specialist who offers size and 40 percent three-point shooting in the Greek League. Meanwhile, Cedi Osman of Macedonia is a versatile option whose shooting has improved dramatically in the past couple of seasons. Either one would be a solid role-player investment.
1. Point Guard/Playmaker
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Michael Carter-Williams is a creative playmaker and rangy prospect, but he wasn't the dual-threat point guard the team needed in order to space the floor. After trading him at the midseason deadline in February, Philadelphia deployed a platoon of quarterbacks headlined by Isaiah Canaan.
Now that it's the offseason, they can move forward and target their ideal point man.
The Sixers needs someone who possesses vision and innovation off the bounce like MCW, but they also would like him to shoot reliably. Carter-Williams' 26 percent rate from three-point land wasn't cutting it.
With their third pick, Hinkie will target a guard who can attack, run the pick-and-roll as well as shoot off both the catch and dribble.
Ohio State guard D'Angelo Russell is the primary target here, which should come as no surprise for those who have followed the Sixers' latest draft storylines.
The 6'5" whizz kid displayed a brilliant mix of passing vision and perimeter accuracy during his lone season in Columbus. He shot 41 percent from distance while doling out five assists per game for the Buckeyes.
With talented receivers like Embiid and Noel in the frontcourt, Russell could dynamically streamline the offense and have a blast in Coach Brown's uptempo style.
