Archive: May, 2011
Be on the lookout for the pre-draft workouts to begin sometime this week at PCOM. The 76ers hold both the No. 16 selection and No. 50 selection in the 2011 NBA Draft, scheduled for June 23. We've already covered, from a variety of angles, the potential options for the Sixers with their first-round pick at No. 16 overall. If you want to read about the possible international selections, you can find that here: International. If you want to read about the outside possibility the Sixers select a guard, you can find that here: guards. And if you want to read about the potential big men available for the Sixers, that would be here: big men.
Today, per multiple e-mail requests, lets take a look at who might possibily be available when the Sixers make their second-round pick at 50th overall. Obviously we've focused the last two weeks on the first-round selection because it's a rarity that an impact player is drafted so late in the game. But it's happened before, and what follows are a few intriguing players who might -- and we repeat, might -- be available at that 50th spot. Some of the following prospects have widely varying predictions on their draft potential.
1. Jeremy Tyler, C-PF, 6-foot-11, currently playing overseas, only 19 years old. Some mock drafts have Tyler falling to the Sixers with the 50th pick, but ESPN's most recent draft prediction has the San Antonio Spurs taking Tyler with the 29th pick of the first round. It seems that Tyler's showing at the Draft Combine improved his standing. He's listed as about the 30-35 best prospect available in the entire draft, so the likelihood that he slips all the way to 50 is decreasing by the minute. Tyler is originally from San Diego. He has a 7-5 wingspan. His assets are his size and leaping ability (and his potential), but there are concerns about his maturity as he skipped his final year of high school to play in Israel and played this past season in Japan.
We'll be Live Chatting this afternoon at 1 p.m. Any 76ers questions, we'll try to get them answered there. You can join by clicking here: Live Chat. To follow on Twitter, you can do there here: Deep Sixer.
In this Sunday's edition of the Inquirer, we'll be continuing our five-part series called Sixers 2.0, discussing the different parts of the organization and on-court needs the Sixers must address if they truly plan on making the jump from a 41-win team to a 50-win team. This Sunday's article focuses on the team's international setup and its international drafting history and future. With that detailed story coming on Sunday, it makes sense to look at the top 5 international prospects in the 2011 NBA Draft, which is scheduled for June 23.
Before we get to that, here's a brief overview of how the Sixers run their international operation. When president Rod Thorn was hired last summer, he hired Marin Sedlacek, who currently serves as the team's overseas scout, talent evaluator, etc. Sedlacek is a native of Serbia and Montenegro and has ties to the Nike Hoops Summit, played each year in Portland, Oregon. Sedlacek mainly focuses on Europe and Africa, while the team uses a handful of contacts within South America to keep them on top of what's going on over there. In addition, director of player personnel, Courtney Witte, made two extended trips overseas this season and general manager Ed Stefanski made one. By all accounts, the Sixers feel very comfortable with the knowledge they have entering this year's draft.
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We're getting closer to the first draft workout at PCOM, the 76ers' practice facility. Look for that first workout to be somewhere around June 1, three weeks before the 2011 NBA Draft that's scheduled to be held June 23. We've covered the draft prospects ad naseum on this blog. If you want to read about some of the power forwards/centers that the Sixers could be looking to snag with the No. 16 pick, you can find that here: Sizing it up. If you just can't get enough and you want to read about the pre-Chicago combine assessment of the bigs in the draft, that's here: big men. If you want to read about the fringe possibility of drafting a shooting guard, you can find that information here: shooting guards. And if you still want to read more, you can get updates on three Sixers through earlier posts: guard-forward Evan Turner, center Spencer Hawes, and big man Craig Brackins.
This is kind of a quiet week for NBA news, unless your team is still playing. The Sixers' brass of president Rod Thorn, general manager Ed Stefanski, assistants Tony DiLeo and Courtney Witte, and coach Doug Collins are more than likely assessing the potential draft picks they watched and interviewed in Chicago, while Stefanski went on to evaluate talent at a smaller combine in Minnesota. In the next weeks, they'll put together a draft board, ranking available players.
Since we've targeted this off season as crucial to bumping this team from 41 wins to 50 wins, we've been trying to address some of the non-draft issues this team will face in the coming months. Per a few email requests (please send any questions you might want addressed to kfagan@phillynews.com), today's topic is forward Thaddeus Young. The questions on Young were two-fold: will he return to the Sixers next year and does he have a chance to become this team's starting small forward?
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For the last 10 days, we've been focusing on the big men available in the 2011 NBA Draft, which is scheduled for June 23. The 76ers, who hold the No. 16 selection, are definitely looking at this point to add a power forward (of which there are plenty) or a center (of which there are fewer), but of course there's always the philosophy of "drafting the best available, regardless of position." It's a philosophy the Sixers have employed in previous drafts. And although it seems unlikely, barring a situation change before the draft, that they'll employ it this time around, it's still worth looking at a few of the potential "smaller" choices, should a highly-ranked player slip to No. 16 and be too good to be true.
The Sixers do have need for a scoring shooting guard, although some of the better ones (Colorado's Alec Burks) will almost certainly be off the board by the time the Sixers draft. Still, I've received a number of emails from folks wanting to talk about the possibility that the Sixers could add a strong piece at this position through the draft, while looking for the crucial big man via trade.
Again, this is a long shot. Word out of the Sixers' camp is that they're looking to add size through this year's draft. As we've done the past two Fridays, we're going to hold another Live Chat this Friday at 1 p.m. It's going to be a standing date through the summer. If you want to read about potential big men who could be available at No. 16, check out our earlier posts from last week. If you want to follow on Twitter, you can do that here: Deep Sixer.
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The NBA Draft combine in Chicago is well underway and it makes sense now to re-evaluate potential prospects. The combine doesn't include live playing, 5-on-5, but it does include drills and physical measurements and the interview process. So in that way it gives us a head start on weeding out who might be on the 76ers' draft board and who might not.
The Sixers brass of president Rod Thorn, general manager Ed Stefanski, coach Doug Collins, and assistant general managers & player personnel guys Tony DiLeo and Courtney Witte are all in Chicago to help with the draft evaluation. The Sixers, when all is said and done, will interview 18 players while in Chicago. Considering how important team chemistry and cohesion are to this specific franchise (that's just the kind of coach Collins is), the interview process, in which Collins participated, is relatively important.
The 2011 NBA Draft, which will be held June 23, is considered a weak draft. Light on point guards and centers, but heavy on power forwards. In past seasons, the Sixers have drafted the best available player, regardless of position, but in a weak draft most experts predict that teams will lean more toward drafting for need. The Sixers don't need a point guard and they don't need a small forward. They need either a bruising big man or a center.
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Join the Inquirer's Kate Fagan as she takes your questions on the Sixers, beginning Friday at 1 p.m.
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We're getting closer to more specific talk about the NBA Draft. The combine in Chicago is May 18-22 and then the 76ers will start bringing in players to PCOM for workouts. Today, we'll just continue with our coverage of some of the smaller questions surrounding the Sixers. On Monday, we discussed the future possibilities with young big man Craig Brackins. If you missed that post, you can find it here: Brackins. On Tuesday, we talked about the future of center Spencer Hawes and whether or not the Sixers would want to re-sign the 23-year-old starting center. If you missed that post, you can find it here: Hawes.
Today, per the e-mails I've received, people seem to be interested in Evan Turner, the No. 2 pick in the 2010 NBA Draft. The question I've received more than any other? If the Sixers could make that selection again, would they still draft Turner? The question I've received the second-most amount of times? Where do the Sixers see Turner playing? At point guard, at starting shooting guard, at small forward?
The point of today's post is to paint a picture of how the franchise views Turner, at this exact moment in time. We all have opinions about how Turner's rookie year went, and nobody believes it was earth-shattering, but I'd like to toss one idea out there that we haven't fully discussed previously. Turner went through the fire. Sixers coach Doug Collins didn't hand him anything. He had a handful of games where he didn't play, per coach's decision, and we'd be naive to think those moments didn't knock the wind out of Turner. But also, in an old-fashioned way, it was probably the best thing that could have happened to him. Because he impressed people with the way he handled himself last season. Nothing was given to him and in the long run there's belief within the organization that this will make him a stronger, more dedicated, more mentally tough player than some rookies who received 35 minutes a game, a starting role, and a prime-time spot on a 20-win team.
Again, we're just trying to tackle some smaller issues in the weeks leading up to the workouts for the NBA Draft. If you want to read the update on forward Craig Brackins, you can find that here: Brackins. The 76ers trio of president Rod Thorn, general manager Ed Stefanski, and coach Doug Collins will be in Chicago later this week for the draft combine and player interviews. The Sixers hold the No. 16 pick in the draft, which will be held June 23. I know we're repeating a lot of these details with each post, but just want to be sure everyone knows the timeline with which we're working. The draft combine is May 18-22, after which the Sixers will start inviting draft prospects to PCOM for workouts, which will lead into the draft on June 23.
There are unknowns we're approaching in the next few months: what position the Sixers will target in the draft (we'll get a better idea of this in the next two weeks), how they will use their first-and-second round picks on June 23 (we'll be analyzing this in the next few weeks), and how they'll play the trade market to fill gaps in the roster (adding a scorer and a big man, depending on what route they take in the draft).
Today, per a few emails received, let's talk about center Spencer Hawes. Will the Sixers re-up his contract? Do they see him as next year's possible starting center? Does the franchise value Hawes?
When the 76ers traded Willie Green and Jason Smith to the New Orleans Hornets for Darius Songaila and Craig Brackins, that deal was executed, in large part, because the Sixers thought they saw something in Brackins and wanted to evaluate him more closely.
In a way, that deal was similar to the one the Sixers pulled off before the 2010 trading deadline, when they acquired Jodie Meeks and Francisco Elson from the Milwaukee Bucks in exchange for Royal Ivey and Primoz Brezec. That deal was centered around Meeks, while the Hornets' deal was built around Brackins.
All of this begs the question: can Brackins burst onto the scene next season like Meeks did this season? In the last few days, we've been talking about the Sixers needs on the interior and questions have come up, repeatedly, about where Brackins stands heading into the 2011-12 season. Instead of looking for the answers outside of the current roster, is it possible that at least one player on the current roster -- Brackins -- might possess the skills to contribute on the interior and fill that gap?
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John Mitchell is in his second year covering the 76ers for the Inquirer after joining the paper in November 2011. He covered the Washington Wizards for the Washington Times from 1998 to 2008. He's also worked at the Philadelphia Tribune, the Wilmington News Journal, Courier-Post, Trenton Times and Elmira Star-Gazette.Born and raised in West Philadelphia - not too far from Will Smith - he graduated from Overbrook High School the same year the 76ers won their last championship. He's a proud graduate of Howard University and the proud father of two sons, Jared and Jordan.
ABOUT MARC NARDUCCI
Marc Narducci has served in a variety of roles with the Inquirer since beginning in 1983. He has covered the 76ers as a backup and a beat writer. In addition, Narducci has covered everything from the Super Bowl to the World Series and a lot in between. Narducci also has a true passion for South Jersey scholastic sports, which he has covered for many years.
