Sam Hinkie is rolling his eyes somewhere right now.
Though the former Philadelphia 76ers overlord was no stranger for drafting talent over need, he never would have considered forking over an asset as valuable as the No. 3 pick in the draft—not when his team wasn’t yet on the verge of title contention. His successor, Bryan Colangelo, is different. He is willing to move the No. 3 pick in this year’s draft, per Philly.com’s Keith Pompey:
“I think that should we move or if there’s a transaction that comes out that gives us a chance to perhaps increase what impact No. 3 can have in terms of its return, I think we will look at it,” Colangelo said of a potential trade. “There’s some discussions that have been fairly interesting.”
The Sixers could try turning the No. 3 selection into multiple picks—especially if their top choice, be it Josh Jackson, De’Aaron Fox or Lonzo Ball, is swiped at No. 2. They could also try parlaying the choice into a more established wing. You better believe the Indiana Pacers will listen if the Sixers build a package around the third overall pick for Paul George. Ditto for the Chicago Bulls and Jimmy Butler.
Still, it would be a major surprise to see the Sixers pivot here. They aren’t really in a position to win anything now, so dealing for semi-imminent flight risks like George (free agent in 2018) and Butler (free agent in 2019) doesn’t really track with their timeline.
There’s also no real scenario in which a best-fit prospect isn’t on the board. The Sixers have been linked to De’Aaron Fox and Justin Jackson more than any other players. Both of them won’t be gone by No. 3. If Lonzo Ball is left on the board and they don’t want to take him, then yes, they could move down a few spots to a team that covets him, but that won’t stop them from taking Fox or Malik Monk. That’s the extent, though, of the wheeling and dealing we should expect from Philly.
