The 2020 NBA draft is going to be something that has never been seen before. It will be done virtually, there is very little that teams can work with, and there have not been too many in-person workouts due to the global pandemic.
For the Philadelphia 76ers, they are handling all of these new challenges while also working in a new front office regime. The Sixers have brought in Daryl Morey to be the team’s new President of Basketball Operations and he will work with general manager Elton Brand and coach Doc Rivers to get the team back on track.
Due to the new challenges of the draft as well as the overhaul in management, the Sixers have to lean more on their scouting department to get the job done. Vice President of Scouting Vince Rozman explained just how these new draft interviews have gone and what the team is looking for in the Zoom calls, for example like the one the team did with Tyrell Terry.
“You don’t want to think you’ve learned too much about a guy after 40 minutes,” Rozman explained. “Just to get a sense of who they are. How they think the game. We like to dig in a lot of on-court analysis. If you can put them through some hypothetical spots on the floor. Like ‘How do you think of this play?’ and ‘Here’s a play we saw you struggle with in college. What may or may not have been the causes there?’ So you like to get a sense of how well they can talk the game and when they’re in a room with coach Rivers, are they going to be able to pick up his direction and how quick?”
When it comes to the Zoom calls, there is only so much one can learn from a prospect. There is a finite amount of time and it comes down to being able to identify what a player can bring to the floor right away. Rozman has been on the majority of the calls, but he also has had some help with him.
“We’ve gone through almost every iteration,” he explained. “I’ve generally been on a lot of them and led them. Matt Lily, our G League GM, has been on a lot of them and led them and various members of our scouting staff and front office staff has been on various times.”
When it comes to draft night on Wednesday, a question that some have is who will have input? There are so many new voices in this front office now, but Rozman pointed out three specific names that will be involved in the final decision.
“With regards to draft night, obviously Daryl is the President of Basketball Operations and he’s going to lead those decisions,” he finished with. “I think Elton and coach Rivers are also very key to his world right now. I think those guys will work together and we as scouting are going to give them all the information they need to make whatever decision comes our way.” [lawrence-related id=39127,39124,38993]