A look back at the 2014 NBA Draft

What if the Cavs or Bucks would have taken Joel Embiid instead? Dave Early joins Adio Royster to discuss that on the latest episode of the Sixers multiverse podcast.

By SB Nation NBA News Aug 16, 2022, 4:01pm EDT

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Today’s universe travelled takes hosts Adio Royster and Dave Early to the summer of 2014. This draft is incredibly important to Philadelphia 76ers fans and history.

It is the draft when the Sixers took Joel Hans Embiid third overall. The Cleveland Cavaliers took Andrew Wiggins with the first overall pick. The Milwaukee Bucks drafted Duke forward Jabari Parker with the second overall.

That left the Sixers and general manager Sam Hinkie to take Embiid with the third pick. There was a back injury. There was a face injury. There was a foot injury. None of that mattered.

Hinkie and the Sixers were happy to take Embiid third, and Embiid was happy not to go to a ‘corny’ city (his words) like Milwaukee. What if things happened differently? What if David Griffin and the Cavaliers had the foresight to take Embiid and (maybe) pair him with Lebron James and Kyrie Irving down the line?

What if the Bucks were patient with Embiid allowing them to pair him with Giannis Antetokounmpo?What does a Sixers team look like when you consider that Jabari Parker may have been the pick with the third overall — barring trade downs or selecting someone like Australia guard Dante Exum or Arizona’s athletic freak, Aaron Gordon? Many possibilities, but that’s the fun of this podcast.

You can listen to the full episode below:

Or through one of the following links: