The word circulating around the internet this morning is that Ed Stefanski may be entertaining the idea of trading the 2nd pick in the draft. This rumor isn't without merit, as Ed Stefanski did mention the possibility, but after going back and listening to the audio we captured from last night, I believe this may be a slight overreaction. I think Stefanski was trying to convey that they would do their due diligence and entertain all possibilities, not that they're intent on trading the pick.
First, Stefanski's quote to fuel the speculation:
"If the first pick, everyone's saying is John Wall, then we have the next we can take anybody we want. We can entertain offers from a lot of people, so this is important for us. And we needed something positive after the year we just went through."
A few additional quotes and my reaction after the jump.
On the surface, that quote is certainly capable of generating headlines. It's the quotes that followed just a few minutes after that one that ease my fear, at least a little.
"I'm looking up on that stage and I see that we have a 19 year old point guard in Jrue Holiday who can flat out play, and now we're going to match that up with a #2 pick in the draft and the other pieces we have with the 76ers, we feel confident that we'll turn this around quickly."
Then when asked just a few seconds later on what this meant to the franchise, Stefanski reiterated how important adding the second overall pick would be to the team.
"When you have a point guard like Jrue Holiday who's really coming on and is only 19 years old, now you add another young player with him, and the players we have like Iguodala and Brand, we're excited. We felt we were better than our record showed last year and now we have to prove it on the court."
That's the thing with the #2 pick, which should be Evan Turner. If you're sitting there at #6 and looking at Al-Farouq Aminu, the argument can be made that Stefanski needs to trade the pick for a veteran who can play immediately, and potentially save Stefanski's job. Now that you're in a position to draft Turner, there's no need to sacrifice the future for immediate dividends. Turner is likely the guy most ready to step in and player a major role, and he does so at a position of need.
Stefanski needs to step away and not over-think this. The Sixers are extremely lucky, and he's walked into a situation that very well may lead to a drastic increase in wins next year, just based off the addition of the #2 pick and a new coach. Don't try to make this decision hard.