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Cooney: Sixers can get big assist from NBA draft

MILWAUKEE - This is the time the faithful have been waiting for - the slow turn around the bend; the journey toward the light after a long trek in a sightless tunnel.

MILWAUKEE - This is the time the faithful have been waiting for - the slow turn around the bend; the journey toward the light after a long trek in a sightless tunnel.

The 76ers have been playing some pretty good basketball of late, sans the Joel Embiid-less effort against the Washington Wizards on Saturday, a 109-93 setback. And with that comes visions of what the future may be. I'm talking future beyond this season, because playoff hopes for this campaign, while fun to discuss, really aren't a possibility unless the team goes somewhere close to 30-14 over the rest of the season.

So let's get past this year and look ahead to what next year might hold and which of the players on this roster might still have roles and what type they might be.

Next season's roster should be heavily influenced by the draft that will be held on June 22 as the Sixers get the better of theirs and Sacramento's pick in the first round, plus the pick of the Los Angeles Lakers, provided it doesn't fall in the top three. If it does, then it is unprotected in 2018. The Sixers will also have two picks in the second round.

There is no doubt that two of starters will be Embiid and Ben Simmons. Those two alone should delight the fan base, but there needs to be a surrounding cast that will help showcase their enormous talents. As much as coach Brett Brown has talked of having Simmons play point guard, which includes covering the other team's point, I just don't see that happening. You can't afford to have Simmons in foul trouble and I think covering a smaller, quicker player for most of a game will make that happen. We'll get back to Simmons' role later.

Ersan Ilyasova is exactly the type of player Embiid needs to flourish. Ilyasova blends a terrific outside shooting touch with a formidable rebounding presence and adequate defense both in the post and on the perimeter. Should the Sixers decide to sign Ilyasova, who is a free agent after this season, then the power-forward spot is totally set with him and Dario Saric serving as his backup as Saric becomes more familiar with the NBA life.

Should the Sixers decide not to bring back Ilyasova, then maybe Saric jumps right into that starting slot. If the Sixers are thinking of letting Ilyasova walk, they need to look more at the Saric-Embiid pairing for the rest of the season and figure out who could be the backup four. Maybe it's a free agent, maybe it's a draft pick.

What will happen with Embiid's backup is anybody's guess. The team has looked really fluid with the rotation of Embiid and Nerlens Noel as his backup. It is a comfortable feeling for Brown to call on Noel as he, like Embiid, is a great defensive presence in the paint and the transition from one to the other is pretty seamless. Jahlil Okafor had a very nice effort against Washington on Saturday, depositing 26 points and grabbing nine rebounds in more than 35 minutes. More than the numbers, Okafor's energy level was high. If that remains when he plays, he can do things like he did on Saturday. That benefits the team in so many ways, as it makes him more desirable for other teams or, should the team get a nice offer for Noel, perhaps it gives them confidence to use Okafor as Embiid's backup. This is still a tricky situation, obviously, and that doesn't even bring up the subject of Richaun Holmes, who could have a long career in this league.

I see the starting point guard next season as being someone who can defend the other team's lead guard and performs well at the offensive end without having the ball in his hands so much, as Simmons will be generating the offense. That means a guard who can run off screens, be an above-average shooter and scorer. Jerryd Bayless is that type, and perhaps it will be his spot next season, backed by one of the high draft picks, or vice versa. Sergio Rodriguez is on a one-year deal, so T.J. McConnell very well could be in the guard mix next season.

The two-guard is an area that probably needs addressing in the draft, which is very heavy at that spot. Adding another outside threat to the starting lineup with Embiid is paramount, and it very well could be settled come June.

So an early look at what things might look like, in my eyes, pans out like this:

Starters

Point guard: Bayless or draft pick

Shooting guard: Draft pick or free agent

Small forward: Simmons

Power forward: Ilyasova

Center: Embiid

Second unit

Point guard: Bayless/McConnell/draft pick

Shooting guard: Gerald Henderson/Nik Stauskas

Small forward: Robert Covington

Power forward: Saric

Center: Noel/Okafor/Holmes

The biggest thing that stands out here is the second unit being a legitimate one in the league. A formidable backup group is a luxury that every organization covets and the Sixers would have a legitimate one. It would also give Timothé Luwawu-Cabarrot a chance to hone his skills a bit more in the Development League. The outlook, of course, doesn't take into account what a trade of Noel or Okafor could bring about, but you get the gist.

The excitement the team has garnered lately is justified, though playoff talk probably isn't. Not right now. But looking at what's just been laid out for next season, those talks appear to be right around the corner.

@BobCooney76

Blog: philly.com/Sixersblog