The NBA is in an indefinite suspension due to the current global coronavirus pandemic and it has the majority of people’s attention taken away from the current state of the league to the future. The Philadelphia 76ers have the 22nd pick in the 2020 NBA Draft and there are plenty of options that can help them right now.
This is part 8 of this 10 part series and if you have missed any in the past, you can check them out here:
[lawrence-related id=29510,29437,29383]
This draft profile focuses on an immediate need for the Sixers that would help them right away. As everybody has figured out by now, the Al Horford-Joel Embiid duo has been a bit of a wreck offensively and there have been some trade suggestions thrown out there with Horford’s name attached to it all. In the very unlikely case the Sixers move Horford, they would need somebody to fill his spot.
Jalen Smith, Maryland
The Sixers have experimented with moving Horford to the bench this season, but they do not have a big sample size due to injuries and then the league suspension. Let’s play hypothetical here and say that they want to continue to have him come off the bench when play resumes, that’s where a guy like Smith comes in.
He stands at 6-foot-10 and can shoot the ball. He has some range out to the 3-point line that would make opponents respect him and, hopefully, take away the double teams that Embiid receives on a nightly basis. He averaged 15.5 points, 10.5 rebounds, 2.4 blocks while shooting 36.8% from deep as a sophomore for the Terrapins this season. He can be a really nice piece for this team either off the bench or potentially as a starter.
Over at Rookie Wire, Bryan Kalbrosky has Smith going to the Boston Celtics with the 26th pick. Kalbrosky writes:
The Celtics could use more size, and Maryland’s Jalen Smith could be an appealing project for the organization. As a sophomore, he averaged 15.5 points and 10.5 rebounds per game while also blocking 2.4 shots per game. Smith was also a surprisingly impressive 3-point shooter, hitting a shot per game from beyond the arc while shooting 36.8% from long range. He is a case study for the new 3-and-D big man and could play a valuable role off the bench in Boston.
The Horford experiment has helped the Sixers in a lot of ways. He has helped Philadelphia become an elite defensive team and they now have a legitimate insurance policy in the case Embiid can’t play, but the offense has struggled mightily. If the Sixers want to keep Horford, and it’s looking like they won’t have a choice due to his contract, so be it, but they do need shooting at the power forward spot.
Smith fits that bill and on top of that, he averaged 2.4 blocked shots for Maryland as a sophomore. He has the potential to be a legitimate starter at the next level. Maybe not an All-Star like Horford was, but he can certainly be a fixture in coach Brett Brown’s rotation. [lawrence-related id=29556,29549,29536]