Coming off another horrendous season that saw them win a total of 18 games, the Philadelphia 76ers find themselves picking near the top of the draft again.
In desperate need of a point guard after trading Michael Carter-Williams to the Milwaukee Bucks during the season, most people anticipate that Philadelphia will select Ohio State’s D’Angelo Russell with the third pick.
In theory, that sounds like a great plan:
“After trading point guard Michael Carter-Williams, the 2014 rookie of the year, to Milwaukee this past season, it would appear that the 76ers need a point guard,” Brad Turner of the Los Angeles Times reported on Saturday. “But the buzz around the NBA is that D’Angelo Russell, a 6-foot-5 point guard from Ohio State whom many see as a lesser Stephen Curry-type, doesn’t want to play for the unpredictable 76ers. Russell did work out for the 76ers last week.”
Ouch.
Considering Karl-Anthony Towns and Jahlil Okafor are expected to be the first two picks in the draft later this week, it is surprising that Russell’s camp would potentially leak this information. If Russell’s camp has made it clear privately that he doesn’t want to be drafted by the Sixers, it could change the entire dynamic of the draft.
Philadelphia could then pass up on Russell in lieu of another point guard, Emmanuel Mudiay, who played overseas in China last year. It could take Russell, all the while calling his bluff. Heck, Philadelphia could look to trade down from the third spot to pick up more assets.
All the talk leading up to the draft has surrounded Towns and Okafor as being the two-prized players in the draft, but Russell has pretty much made it a Big 3 just a few days from commissioner Adam Silver taking the podium. That makes Philadelphia’s decision plenty important as we prepare for the draft.
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