The Philadelphia 76ers had themselves an excellent draft night as they were able to bring in the shooters the team needed to surround Ben Simmons and Joel Embiid with in order to move forward.
One of those shooters that the team acquired was Isaiah Joe out of Arkansas at 49. He is one of the elite shooters in this draft and they believe he can be a guy who can fit with this team right now despite being selected so late.
“Isaiah Joe’s not too complicated,” said team president Daryl Morey. “He’s just one of these elite shooters coming out of college. A little more defensive potential in our mind than what people give him credit for. That’s not what he’s going to hang his hat on, but the shooting is truly elite and we felt like he was a great bet.”
Joe shot only 34.2% from deep on 10.6 attempts as a sophomore with the Razorbacks, but that is mostly due to a knee injury he played through that bothered him and his shot. He shot 41.4% from deep as a freshman and he can bring that shooting touch to the Sixers and be a fit right away.
“I feel like they really stressed the need for shooters,” Joe explained. “That’s why they picked me at 49. They really value my skillset. I’ll be able to stretch the floor with my shooting ability. Ben Simmons is a willing passer and very capable of it and so I’m there for any kick-outs that he needs when he’s driving the lanes. If he drives on my side, I can occupy the defender, and that gives him a nice lane to the basket.”
Not only can he make life easy for Simmons, but he also makes life easier for Embiid down low. If teams continue to double him as they have in the past, then he can easily kick it out to a guy like Joe right away.
“The same for Joel Embiid,” he started with. “It kind of opens up the lane for him now that I’m out there. If my man helps, the inside-out game will work because Joel is a very skilled player. He can score around the basket, the midrange, and he can pass. I feel like our games will complement each other in a great way.”
It is due to these important factors that the team does not have any plans to send him down to the G League right now. His shooting ability is too important to what the team is trying to accomplish right now.
“They’re willing to give me a shot, but nothing is given,” Joe stated. “I’ve got to work my tail off and beat out the next man, but this is a team that doesn’t have any G League aspirations for me.”
Isaiah Joe added that the team has not expressed any G League aspirations for him. It sounds like he will get a shot for some minutes right away. #Sixers
— Ky Carlin (@Ky_Carlin) November 19, 2020
Obviously, it remains to be seen, but Joe looks like he can be a really solid fit for them moving forward. He brings excellent value to the team at 49 as he fits exactly what they have been missing. [lawrence-related id=39276,39267,39264]