Who is a player the Sixers should definitely try and trade up for?
Ky: Other than Ramsey and Lewis Jr. mentioned above, a clear option is Saddiq Bey. This kid is a lights out shooter at 45.1% from deep on 5.6 attempts and that should catch the eye of general manager Elton Brand. If Bey gets out of the lottery, Brand should be on the phone making calls to move up and grab him, because there’s very little chance he’d be there at 22.
Justin: I don’t really think Philadelphia has the assets to move up much in the first round, but I could see them working out a deal with a team like the Boston Celtics. Boston had seven rookies join the roster in 2019-20, and simply cannot roster all four likely incoming picks without doing something. Add in that they are likely looking for more bites of the apple to find solid, low-cost rotation players with swingman Jayson Tatum’s max (or nearly so) rookie extension looming, they could also give themselves multiple swings in the first round.
Combining the Sixers’ 34th and 36th picks for the Celtics’ 26th or 30th selections could give Boston two unguaranteed salaries to kick the tires on more prospects with fewer tax implications down the road, and could give Philly a shot at a player like Duke’s Tre Jones, a point guard who could conceivably develop into a solid reserve ball handler.
Logan: If Saddiq Bey gets out of the lottery, I’d make a phone call. He averaged 16 points on 45% shooting from 3 this year, and with 5.6 3-point attempts, that’s not a paltry sample size. Listed at 6-foot-8, 215 pounds, and with a 6-foot-11 wingspan, he has the potential to be a strong 3-and-D guy early. He also has the potential to develop further, showing a strong eye for getting to offensive rebounds and the ability to body smaller defenders in the 5- to-15-foot range or so. The more I watch him, the more I see top-10 potential, and I think he could help the Sixers immediately with his quick and accurate 3-point shot, even if those other skills don’t show as quickly.
Bryan: There is a slight chance that Iowa State guard Tyrese Haliburton could fall out of the lottery. In such a case, the front office for Philadelphia should do everything in their power to get Haliburton on their roster. Haliburton is a low-usage guard with a 6-foot-5 frame and a 7-foot wingspan. He is one of the most NBA-ready 3-and-D prospects, as he shot 41.9% from 3-point range and his steal percentage (3.8%) ranked second-best among high-major underclassmen.
Meanwhile, his assist-to-usage rate shows he can be an elite distributor without needing the offense to run through him. Considering that Philly big man Joel Embiid is one of the highest usage players in the NBA, the fit would be phenomenal for Haliburton. He does not require the ball in his hands to make a difference, which means that he could still be a successful player as mostly a distributor and facilitator. Otherwise, he could also provide value as a catch-and-shoot option for the Sixers. He averaged 1.49 points per possession when finishing on this play type, per Synergy, which ranked 98th percentile among all college basketball players. Haliburton was 35-for-69 (50.7%) from 3-point range off the catch, which would be an incredibly helpful tool for the 76ers.