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With the NBA draft a little over a month away, the combine quickly approaching, and the pool of draft eligible players and players returning to school just about set in stone I thought it'd be a good time to re-visit the mini Sixers' wish list I last updated in March.
My personal wish list consisted of 13 players – mostly big men, for obvious reasons – but in the last two months six of the 13 have decided to forego the draft for more college. The six drop-outs included my number one prospect (John Henson), Thomas Robinson (3), Patric Young (9), Mouphtaou Yarou (11), Festus Ezeli (12) and Aaric Murray (13). Yarou, Ezeli and Murray were all second round options and there was virtually zero chance John Henson fell to the Sixers pick, so the only real losses were Robinson and Young.
A six-player wish list simply isn't going to cut it, so it's time to add a few more prospects to the list. A big man is the obvious need, but a potential replacement for Thaddeus Young, Andre Iguodala and/or Lou Williams should not be ruled out. Feel free to weigh in with your comments.
Hit the jump for the additions of a few new faces to my now decimated Sixers' wish list.
Unofficial Sixers Draft Wish List - 05/15
- Kenneth Faried
- Chris Singleton
- Lucas Nogueira
- Markieff Morris
- Tristan Thompson
- Jimmer Fredette
- Jordan Hamilton
- Josh Selby
- Tyler Honeycutt
- Reggie Jackson
- Tobias Harris
- Klay Thompson
Selby was, in a word, awesome in the workouts I saw in Vegas. At Kansas, Selby looked wild, out of control and oddly unathletic. He struggled to create space from himself and made a number of bad decisions with the ball and in his shot selection.In Vegas he once again resembled the superstar we saw in high school. He was explosive athletically, got to the basket at will and shot the ball very well from range.
In 3-on-3 games, the UCLA Bruins' Malcolm Lee -- a terrific perimeter defender -- struggled to stay in front of Selby, who finished above the rim with a number of impressive dunks. Selby showed off an impressive floater and has the ability to create space with his crossover and then step back and nail the J. He really resembled Golden State Warriors guard Monta Ellis.
He has a few perceived off-the-court problems, has been described as "selfish", and was reportedly disliked by some Kansas teammates. At 6'2" he's also undersized for a guy who's more of a point guard than shooting guard. But if he's available at 16 he may be worth the risk for the Sixers. He's another potential Lou Williams replacement. He may never be as good offensively as Lou, but he's already a better defender. Like Fredette (and Lou for that matter) undersized combo guards fit well with the Sixers because of the size, versatility and defense of Holiday and Turner.
Reggie Jackson (ESPN: 24, DX: 22)
Jackson is yet another potential Lou Williams replacement. Although he stands 6'3" he has a freakish 7'0" wingspan. Reggie put up some very impressive offensive numbers at Boston College this past season, but outside of his athleticism and wingspan Jackson seems to lack the spectacular. He's solid in a lot of areas, but if I were drafting a replacement for Lou (sixth man) I'd like either a great scorer or great shooter.
Tobias Harris (ESPN: 14, DX: 15)
Tobias is a potential successor to Elton Brand. Harris is a talented offensive player with a good face-up game, and he's only 18 years old. The problem is – like Elton Brand – he's undersized, doesn't rebound the ball well for a power forward, and lacks explosive athleticism. Harris may be a terrific talent, but he's lower on my Sixers' wish list because they desperately need a banger/defensive anchor of a big man, not another non-rebounding offensive-minded one.
Klay Thompson (ESPN: 19, DX: 18)
At 6'6" Thompson has nice size and rebounded well in college (14 DREB%). He's another solid player with a diverse set of skills. He lacks great athleticism and he's an underwhelming defender, but he's a terrific shooter, a decent passer and a smart player. You can never have enough shooters in the NBA, especially a team lacking like the Sixers. I think he has enough "stuff" to stay on the floor, unlike our favorite shooter Jason Kapono, who we've still yet to see dribble.
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We'll get into to second round targets later this month.