2024 NBA Mock Draft 2.0: Hawks play it safe, Wizards go big, Spurs fill two needs

16) Philadelphia 76ers- Tristian De Silva

By the time free agency rolls around, the Philadelphia 76ers may only have three players on their roster: Joel Embiid, Tyrese Maxey, and whoever they select 16th overall. That will give them a much-needed chance to give their roster a complete facelift and given that they could have as much as $60 million in cap space, the need for a cheap NBA-ready player would allow them to maximize that space.

Based on that, they could target Tristan Da Silva. De Silva is one of the oldest players in the draft at 23 years old, which is usually seen as a red flag. Most players tend to be fully formed by that age with little room for improvement, though there have been exceptions to that rule, specifically Derrick White, who was also a 23-year-old rookie and, like Da Silva, also went to Colorado.

At 6'9, Da Silva should be able to spend time at both forward spots and would be a unique fit playing next to Embiid. He is a terrific shooter, hitting 39.5% of his threes during his senior year on 4.8 attempts per game and 38.6% from three over his four-year career, proving that it was far from a fluke.

He also showed off his playmaking ability and was adept at finding cutters from behind the three-point line and throwing lobs or drop passes to big men in the paint.That passing should help Embiid get easy looks, and there might even be the possibility of Da Silva running some pick-and-rolls in the NBA. Defensively, he is mobile enough to stay with his man on drives and contest or block shots at the rim, making him a seemingly ideal fit for retooling the Sixers.