The Philadelphia 76ers are not a fortunate team in the grand scheme, considering how their season sputtered due to Joel Embiid and Paul George’s injuries. On the night of the NBA draft lottery, they undoubtedly were, landing the No. 3 overall pick of the 2025 NBA draft with a 31.6% chance of landing in the top three.
With that pick, the Sixers are expected to take Rutgers Scarlet Knights basketball star Ace Bailey. If not Philadelphia, some team is expected to trade for that pick.
If, for some reason, the Sixers do trade out of that slot, is there a chance they’d be looking to move up in the draft order?
PhillyVoice’s Adam Aaronson believes that while the team could look into moving up to take Bailey’s Rutgers teammate, Dylan Harper, the likeliest outcome is sticking with the pick because of the building blocks already in the Sixers’ backcourt.
“I disagree with the idea that keeping the pick is the least likely outcome — I believe sticking and picking is always the most likely outcome because trades are difficult to make — but I certainly think the Sixers moving the pick is plausible. Would they move up just one spot to nab Rutgers guard Dylan Harper? San Antonio landing the No. 2 pick could theoretically open the door for those conversations because of their cemented backcourt of De’Aaron Fox and Stephon Castle. But with Tyrese Maxey, Jared McCain and likely Quentin Grimes already locked in as future cornerstones, would the Sixers make that move? I am skeptical that these two teams are a match,” Aaronson wrote.
Philadelphia has many veteran moving parts that need to be sorted this offseason, but establishing a young nucleus to surround Tyrese Maxey, the team’s de facto franchise player, is their most important piece of business.
Whether they pick at No. 2, No. 3, or anywhere else in the first round, the Sixers have a lot to sort to figure out if there needs to be a sequel to “The Process.”