Philadelphia 76ers’ Next Stop: The NBA Draft Lottery

For the past two off-seasons, the NBA Draft has served as the biggest night of the entire year for the Philadelphia 76ers. Sam Hinkie’s regime began in 2013 by resurfacing the Sixers’ foundation with a trade that sent All-Star point guard Jrue Holiday to New Orleans for Nerlens Noel, among other assets. Five picks later, Michael Carter-Williams was assigned the role of replacing Holiday.

More from Philadelphia 76ers

After getting a 19-win season under their belt, Philly exhausted their 2014 draft night on Joel Embiid and Dario Saric, who are yet to make their NBA debuts. With the greater half of the season now behind us, the eyes of Philadelphia will now grow increasingly focused on the 2015 Draft and who could become the next pillar in the 76ers’ foundation.

The Sixers are again expected to be among the earliest teams handpicking their future on draft night. Owning the third-worst record in the NBA leaves them with a 15.6 percent chance to land each of the top three picks and a 22.4 percent chance of landing the fourth pick.

This isn’t good news for those on the Jahlil Okafor bandwagon, but based on the Sixers’ needs from this draft, not sitting in the top spot could allow Philly to dodge the possibility of a damaging decision in the paint.

In his latest Mock Draft (Insider), ESPN’s Chad Ford paired the Sixers with Ohio State freshman sensation D’Angelo Russell with the third pick, deeming Russell as, “far and away the best fit for the Sixers.” With 29 games left in year two of Philadelphia’s rebuild remaining, the anticipation surrounding the future will increase as the losses inevitably pile up.

The time will soon arise when Sixers’ management hones in on the best fit, and there are plenty of reasons to believe Russell is that guy.

Jan 29, 2015; Columbus, OH, USA; Ohio State Buckeyes guard D’Angelo Russell (0) celebrates following the win over the Maryland Terrapins at Value City Arena. Ohio State won the Big Ten game 80-56. Mandatory Credit: Joe Maiorana-USA TODAY Sports

The Sixers’ biggest need in the upcoming draft is a scoring wing that can shoot, and preferably create their own shot. Philadelphia is second to last in 3-point field goal percentage at .310, and has a backcourt littered with young, but weak ball handlers.

Of course, the jewel of the upcoming draft is Okafor, but Philly landing him would seemingly mean Noel or Embiid are on their way out, leaving their backcourt questions for next season unanswered. This is what makes Russell the perfect fit for the Sixers, as he would give Philly the luxury of filling a core need with the flexibility to flirt with potential changes.

Some mock drafts have Russell slotted behind only Okafor, which shows how coveted of a prospect the 18-year-old combo guard is. But with some of the needs of other top teams, such as New York and Minnesota with Jahlil Okafor and Karl-Anthony Towns, Philly should have a great shot at Russell anywhere in the top four.

At 19.1 points and 5.5 assists per game, Russell has been the do-it-all scoring guard with the ability to command an offense for the Buckeyes. The southpaw guard’s streaky scoring tendencies have drawn wide comparisons to James Harden, and one of the GM’s whose radar he will be at the top of is the same man who brought Harden into Houston in a very strategic trade; the Sixers’ Hinkie.

"“There’s so much to love about his game,” one GM told ESPN.com about Russell. “Even when he has a bad game, it looks like a good one because every time the ball leaves his lands, it looks like it’s going in. He plays with such great confidence and has a terrific feel. I think he could be a James Harden-type player at the next level. That’s what kind of scorer and playmaker he could be.”"

Russell is clearly being anticipated as a future NBA superstar on the perimeter, which is exactly what the Sixers are in need of. Seen as a tremendously skilled combo guard, Russell would fill the current void as the Sixers’ shooting guard.

Where the extra benefit of drafting Russell comes in is with the uncertainty of Carter-Williams’ future in Philly, whose name has been thrown around in trade discussions numerous times.

Although Russell’s best analysis is as a scoring guard with the playmaking ability to run an offense, he’s believed to have a future as a point guard in the NBA, just as much as a shooting guard.

"“Scouts believe he has the tools to excel at both the 1 and the 2 in the NBA. He is a smooth scorer who can score both inside and outside and he’s a got the handle and court vision to be a terrific playmaker in the NBA someday.”"

This move would give the Sixers an extra year to evaluate and decide on where they see MCW fitting in the long-term future, just as it would do the same for the up-and-coming Tony Wroten, who fills the role of a scoring threat off the bench that can run the show in MCW’s absence.

With this repertoire of talent in the backcourt, the Sixers would have the flexibility to do anything from retaining all three as key pieces for the future, to trying multiple fits and toying with the trade market whenever Hinkie can find a high-reward return for the odd man out.

With a year of this lineup in place, the Sixers could produce a rotation of MCW, Russell, Robert Covington, Noel and Embiid, with Wroten, K.J. McDaniels and whichever draft picks and remaining pieces are competing for minutes to fill out the bench.

Coupled with the defensive-minded, compete on every play mentality Brett Brown has instilled in Philadelphia and topped off with the reduced competition of playing in the Eastern Conference; the Sixers could actually put a competitive unit on the hardwood next season.

In the ‘cost-benefit analysis’ mind of Hinkie, as described in a great piece by ESPN’s Pablo Torre, where the reward is always compared with the risks, the high-reward, low-risk benefit of Russell makes him the perfect man for the Sixers. If there’s a guy to start getting excited about in The City of Brotherly Love, it may very well be Russell.

All quotes courtesy of ESPN.com

Next: Our Latest NBA Mock Draft

More from Hoops Habit