Sixers need to get shooters in draft | Bob Cooney

IN MANY REGARDS, this offseason for the 76ers isn't too different from those of the previous three.

In one instance, it is completely different.

After seasons in which 19, 18 and 10 wins were compiled, the first item on the list for the summertime agenda was to accumulate the best talent possible in the draft. It didn't matter the position, type of play or specific strengths of who the team selected, that player simply had to be the most talented at their slot in the draft.

Joel Embiid was most likely going to be the top pick in the 2014 draft before a foot fracture was suffered during a predraft workout. Instead, he fell to the Sixers at No. 3, a risk that had to be taken, and correctly was, by then-general manager Sam Hinkie. Yes, the team had Nerlens Noel already on the roster, but Embiid was the best talent on the board when the team chose, with Andrew Wiggins and Jabari Parker already taken.

With Embiid sidelined for the season, the 18 wins afforded the Sixers the No. 3 pick yet again, and in 2015 they went with Jahlil Okafor when Karl-Anthony Towns and, somewhat surprisingly, D'Angelo Russell were gone. Many will argue, perhaps correctly, that Kristaps Porzingis and his outside shooting ability and 7-3 frame would have been a better fit. But Hinkie went with who he thought was the best player, as getting the best players was still the priority.

There didn't have to be much thought put into last year's draft as the Sixers' 10 wins landed them in the top spot and that landed them Ben Simmons, a 6-10 player who possesses the ballhandling and passing abilities usually owned by a premier point guard. Once again, however, a rookie's season was snuffed out for the Sixers as Simmons fractured his foot at the end of training camp.

Though the Sixers wound up with 28 wins, they may be in the best position of the past four offseasons when it comes to the draft, as Hinkie's "process" landed them the opportunity to get the Lakers' pick, provided it's not in the top three. Couple that with the Sixers' own pick and they very well could have two selections in the top 5.

This time, however, going best player available isn't the way president Bryan Colangelo and coach Brett Brown need to go. Unlike the 14th overall pick for the Eagles later this week, the Sixers have to find players in this draft that can fill specific holes, most notably shooters, shooters and more shooters. Beyond that, scoring is the other area the team needs to address, and really that's it. Forget about shot-blocking centers, projects who may or may not become good shooters or scorers, athletic wings who can run the floor but in order to do much else will take years of work. The time is now to get this roster as strong as possible for the upcoming season, to find out how far it can get them and then realize what pieces need to be added.

Washington's Markelle Fultz most likely will be gone unless the Sixers get the top pick and it appears UCLA's Lonzo Ball will go at No. 2. Ball seems too much like Simmons and that may be a problem for the Sixers moving forward, so let's rule those two out.

Kansas' Josh Jackson is the type of athletic wing that Brown loves, but his shooting is very questionable, and that is something the team can ill-afford. With Embiid, Simmons and Dario Saric sharing the floor the majority of the time, driving lanes will be limited, and that appears where the highly competitive Jackson will mostly make his mark. He'd be ideal if his shooting wasn't perceived as a project.

Duke's Jayson Tatum is another of the athletic forwards who tantalize with their ability and size, but 6-8 small forwards who are just decent shooters really are everywhere in the NBA. And, his offensive game could be easier to stop than it was in college where Tatum was facing opponents who weren't as strong and athletic as they are in the NBA.

The Kentucky backcourt of shooter Malik Monk and point guard De'Aaron Fox still seem to be as intriguing as any when looking to fill out the Sixers' roster. Monk's 6-4 size is a drawback to some, but if Embiid, Simmons and Saric are doing what is envisioned, open shots should be plentiful and no one coming out of college this season hit open shots as well as Monk.

In Fox, the team would have that do-everything point guard with tremendous quickness, a wonderful ability to get out on the break and a knack for correctly deciding between pass and finish at the rim. While it appears the team is pretty set on having veteran combo guard Jerryd Bayless in the starting lineup to begin the season, Fox would be the perfect compliment coming off the bench.

I wrote last week of the benefits of the team looking into signing free agent Ersan Ilyasova to provide much needed sharp-shooting. Let's say that gets done. Let's also envision the Sixers getting Monk and Fox.

Does a starting lineup of Bayless, Monk, Simmons, Ilyasova and Embiid do anything for you? Though coming off the bench, Saric would get the majority of the minutes at the four, but starting Ilyasova gives Embiid room to work offensively right off the opening tip. Then a second unit off the bench could be Fox, Gerald Henderson, Robert Covington, Saric and Okafor/Richaun Holmes with Timothe Luwawu-Cabarrot, Nik Stauskas, T.J. McConnell and Justin Anderson to choose from for additional minutes. And that doesn't include any free agents Colangelo may be targeting.

Or maybe this draft, so touted for the past couple of years, isn't as strong as many envisioned, and maybe Colangelo and/or Brown don't see ideal fits among the top six or seven players. If that's the case, draft night could be even busier than it was during the Hinkie era.

The difference is, now is the time to address needs. It is obvious what those needs are, now it's imperative to fill them. Best player available can't be the mantra now. That time has passed.

cooneyb@phillynews.com

@BobCooney76

Blog: philly.com/Sixersblog