Bigs in 2011 Draft
After yesterday's Live Chat, it seemed as if a lot of folks wanted to talk about the potential big men available in June's NBA Draft. If you read Thursday's entry, you know that the 76ers have very little wiggle room via free agency, and therefore almost certainly will use the draft and trade market to make improvements for the 2011-12 season.
Bigs in 2011 Draft
After yesterday's Live Chat, it seemed as if a lot of folks wanted to talk about the potential big men available in June's NBA Draft. If you read Thursday's entry, you know that the 76ers have very little wiggle room via free agency, and therefore almost certainly will use the draft and trade market to make improvements for the 2011-12 season.
The Sixers hold the No. 16 selection in the 2011 NBA Draft, scheduled for June 23. The Sixers also have a second-round selection. And while we're not yet at the point where we can narrow down the prospects the Sixers are targeting (the Chicago combine is May 18-22 and the Sixers will begin inviting prospects for workouts toward the end of the month), we can certainly take a look at some of the big men that will be available under the assumption that the team will want to add frontcourt depth.
Some of these guys are slated to go much higher than the Sixers' No. 16 spot, but a draft-day trade isn't an impossible scenario, so we include even the big men that are projected as top 5 picks. This year's draft isn't particularly mind-blowing, but there are a few intriguing interior players.
Here goes, in no particular order:
1.) Enes Kanter, projected anywhere from No. 3 to No. 8 in various mock drafts, a 6-foot-10 center from Turkey, 18 years old, 250 pounds, 7-1 wingspan, working out at the University of Kentucky, but ineligible because of his pro career in Turkey. Sixers would need to make a draft-day trade (a considerable piece, their No. 16, possibly an in-between guy like Marreese Speights in exchange for the other team's high pick and a considerable high-salary player to match the trade) to get into Kanter's range. The book on Kanter is that he's a legitimate low-post scorer as opposed to some big guys who want to play away from the basket. He isn't overwhelmingly athletic, but his basketball IQ allows him to make the correct interior plays more often than you'd expect.
2.) Jonas Valanciunas, projected anywhere from No. 4 to No. 11, a 6-11 center from Lithuania, 19 years old, and 240 pounds. Similar trade likely needed to move up for Valanciunas, although depending on how the combine and draft shake out, he could drop as some mock drafts already have him at No. 11. Seems like Kanter and Valanciunas have had some matchups coming up through the ranks, with Kanter being the more polished of the two. Very skinny, raw talent -- a guy that is developing and would likely be more of a project.
3.) Bismack Biyumbo, projected in the No. 5 to No. 8 range as more than one mock draft has him at No. 7, a 6-9 power forward from the Congo, 19 years old. Seems like this guy has burst onto the scene in the last month, specifically impressing scouts at the Nike Hoop Summit in Portland. His toughness seems to be his greatest asset: he blocks shots, rebounds, and gets to the free throw line. Undersized, but emotional is how the scouting report reads. Kind of reminds one of Reggie Evans, including poor free throw shooting. Sixers are still too low to snag this guy, so this would be deal territory.
4.) Donatas Montiejunas, projected anywhere from No. 11 to No. 20, a 7 footer from Lithuania, 20 years old, and 215 pounds. The scouting report reads best-case like Toronto's Andrea Bargnani and worst case like Phoenix's Channing Frye, this just doesn't seem to be the interior presence the Sixers need as both those guys prefer hanging out on the perimeter and impressing with their jump shots.
5.) Marcus Morris (Kansas), 6-9 power forward, Markieff Morris (Kansas), 6-9 power forward, Tristan Thompson (Texas), 6-8 power forward, Tobias Harris (Tennessee), 6-8 power foward, Kenneth Farried (Morehead State), 6-8 power forward, and Trey Thompkins (Georgia), 6-8 power forward. This list of guys basically gobbles up the mock draft area from No. 12 to No. 20. Clearly the list of 6-8 power forwards is long and the Sixers will have an opportunity to draft one of them at the No. 16 spot. The question will be whether or not the Sixers want to make a move to get a dedicated low-post player higher in the draft.
The Sixers also have the 20th pick of the draft's second round (50th overall), with which to snag a project big man. One mock draft in particular (draftexpress) has the Sixers selecting 6-11 center Jeremy Tyler with that pick. Tyler is 19 years old and weighs 240. He's from San Diego, but currently playing his first season of professional basketball overseas. That worked out well for Milwaukee's Brandon Jennings, but Tyler has had a rougher time of it. For a more in depth look, you can check out this New York Times piece about Tyler: Overseas.
We'll know more about all of these guys by the end of next week. If you want to follow on Twitter, click here: Deep Sixer.
--Kate
Each week, Kate will check in from the road and answer fan questions about the Sixers. Click here to ask Kate a question or e-mail her at kfagan@phillynews.com.
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The kid from the congo sounds intriguing because of his wing span. We need someone who can protect the rim. I am sure everyone is even more intrigued by him after the success of Ibaka. It is just a shame we wasted a pick on Speights when we could have picked Ibaka, McGee, or Hibbert that year.— Mattb- I like the 6'9" kid from Morehouse State, Kenneth Faried. A beast on the boards.— mdriban
- international bball has gotten better year after year. maybe the level of player is also. and if all college big men are 6'8", then i'll take the big dude from the congo.— fishtown charlie
- Thompson from UT could be a great player. Saw him play all year and he is great inside. That said, he is not a center that we need but would be a great replacement for Brand eventually.— psuwelsh
- What's w/ all the talk about drafting another forward? A new "forward" power or not, just takes minutes from EB and TY. Not saying there's a lot out there to be had, but let's concentrate on looking/packaging for a real force as a center that would free-up EB & TY to do there thing. If EB stays, and I think he should, let's build a team that let's him play his game for next 2 yrs.
Can we avoid going into new season w/ a top draft choice or new player who doesn't exactly fit-in anywhere? Can we build a team where what talent we have is maximized at every position?— wordsword - I think you are the only one that has gone out and definitively said they want Brand back. I think you have to take what the draft gives you and worry about fitting in later. How many more years can you expect Brand to be here. If the draft class is deep in PF why not get his replacement now. Thad is not a PF he can play some 4 but he is a SF
- bismack biyumbo---great name. If he turns out to be a good shot blocker i could see his nickname quickly becoming "smack".— murdock101
- Craig Brackins is your project big man. I don't see a need for another one. Get one via trade somehow and get depth in the draft, not your starter.— LooGitsDubC
- Kate Fagan gave the impression that Brackins does not really fit in their plans. I tend to agree with BilVil: if there are no legitimate centers in the draft, then get the best power forward to replace Brand down the line. If Iguodala is traded, they can move Young to small forward. Try to move Iguodala and Speights for a defensive-minded center, if at all possible. I know BlackFoot01 likes Klay Thompson, the 6:6 shooting guard from Washington, but I doubt the Sixers will go that route, given that Meeks, Holiday, Turner, and Williams are their guard rotation. They could use a guy like Thompson, however, if they are thinking of moving Turner to the three, keeping Young at the four, and feel that Meeks is not a quality starting two, but better coming off the bench. My problem with Meeks was his tendency to disappear in too many games and his seeming lack of a solid mid-range game to go with his three-point shooting. Collins seems to like him, however, so they may be looking strictly at shoring up their weak interior defense. In many respects, I think that Turner is the key, particularly if he can improve his outside shooting touch when schooled by Herb Magee.— chuckw
- okay, so I guess the question should've been, who are the defensive power forwards in this draft. I've liked what I've heard about Markieff. Who else is defensive-minded??? @chuckw: YES, Meeks is WACK. He plays like a old Rashard Lewis (catch-and-shoot limited), and he's under 25, no defense, undersized, I don't get the love for him. And he's our only pure SG, like Collins said.— BlackFeet01
- Meeks? Wack? I think that's a little over the top. As a fan base I know we are hungry. But it's the guy's second season. The first season he actually got minutes. His defense wasn't horrible. It was better than Kapono's, which isn't saying much I know. These young guards just need time to gel. Meeks problem is he plays off of others. Meeks and Lou should be coming of the bench next season.
- Kaman= hawes on steroids? Didn't know roids gave you a highly efficient back to basket game a turnaround j left or right shoulder and a face up j out to 18 ft... Left AND right hand hook. All with a bball iq. Defense well..... Yunno. That's ok though.. Who will he have to defend??? Z? Damp? Anthony? Noah? An undersized boozer?? He would be the 2nd best center in the east.. Hes expiring and hes 29. Players tend to disappear when they are not in the teams plans.. Its clear jordan and blake are the future. Kenyon picks up the slack as the defensive 5. If it's up to the players who will be brought in kamans a sixer.— combocancer1975
- Combo: what kind of money and length of contract would you anticipate Kaman should get with the Sixers, given that he has missed 127 games in three of the last four years due to injury? Another bad contract would sink the Sixers for years, particularly if Kaman goes lame.— chuckw
- @BigVil: so what, you think he can develop some driving skills, and stop being a catch-and-shoot guy? and yes, his defense sucks, if not HORRIBLE. I mean, if u REALLY think he can be a quality guard, u TRULY belive that, than I'll buy into wat ur trying to sell.— BlackFeet01
Keith Pompey has been an Inquirer reporter since September 2004. He takes over the Sixers beat after covering the Temple men’s basketball team for the past three years and Temple football the past two seasons. Pompey also previously covered the Penn and Drexel men’s basketball team and Villanova football team after initially focusing on high school sports.
Pompey is a native Philadelphian and a University of Pittsburgh. Follow him on Twitter @PompeyOnSixers or reach Keith at kpompey@phillynews.com.
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.
