With the first night of the draft two weeks away, V.J. Edgecombe appears to be in good position to be selected with the third pick, Jake Fischer of The Stein Line writes in his latest Substack column (subscription required).
Sources tell Fischer that the Baylor guard impressed Sixers officials with his “work ethic, personality and interviews” during a visit to Philadelphia last week. He went to dinner with president of basketball operations Daryl Morey and other team executives, and star guard Tyrese Maxey flew in to meet with Edgecombe.
Fischer states that the Sixers view Edgecombe as a strong defensive complement to Maxey in their backcourt. He also brings obvious offensive skills after scoring 15.0 points per game and shooting 34% from three-point range during his freshman season with the Bears.
Sources tell Fischer that the Philadelphia workout is believed to be the only one Edgecombe has conducted so far. He adds that some teams believe it will be Edgecombe’s only pre-draft visit, although he could change his mind as the draft gets closer.
Rutgers forward Ace Bailey, who has been linked to the Sixers in several mock drafts, is also scheduling a private workout in Philadelphia, Fischer tweets.
If Edgecombe isn’t taken at No. 3, rival teams believe the Hornets will grab him with the fourth pick or offer the selection to teams looking to move up in the draft, sources tell Fischer.
Fischer identifies the Wizards as a team to watch in a trade-up scenario for Edgecombe, noting that with picks No. 6 and 18, Washington has the assets to swing a deal with either Philadelphia or Charlotte.
This is who I want for sure.
Outrageously gifted athlete and shows it . Would love to see him next to Maxey.
If Maxey could truly play the point. Then this would be a no brainer. Sixers biggest need is a true PG. Other than Harper no one else can help next year. Sixers are ready to compete now. Especially with Celtics down. Imo their best move is trading down and add two more ready players.
Knick Al we don’t see a bunch of true point guards in this watered down NBA anymore, sadly. Agreeing with you vj is a no brainer.
I agree the position has changed. But look what true PG can still do. What are Pacers without Hali. Knicks without Brunson. Sixers have no one to run an offense or manage a game.
Fears can be that. Jakucionis can be that. But are still raw and years away. Imo their best pick is Kon. He is shooting they need. Has good size and can help next year. Plus they add another pick trading down. To be a good team you need a game manager. PG with a handle, smarts, scorer. Is the best you can do. Even SGA is really a PG. he started as one.
True but unless I see a pure point guard, you take vj and figure it out later. 3 is to valuable to the sixers to trade out. Can’t take players back in a trade and Morey needs to keep it simple stupid.
You forgot the rest freakessly athletic got handles streaky shooter can sneak up on you on defense sees the floor well is a good leader in the locker room and can jump out of the gym. Did I cover everything that the guys on ESPN say about every player that’s drafted or did I miss anything?
I could see DC trading up with Philly to take Ace at 3. They def don’t need to add 2 more young guys to the roster. Sarr & Ace could be really scary to play against in a couple yrs.
They would be the scariest tank commander duo in the league next season, that’s for sure. Add Carrington and AJ Johnson, that’s a 70 loss candidate right there.
VJ probably will be the third pick. Sixers could trade down. Ace is still raw imo. Hasn’t improved much since HS. Whoever takes him better be right about him. And be ready to coach him up.
Ace is a bust, sorry
Hope he proves me wrong tho
I have that suspicion as well. I can see him drop to 5 or 6 and be a bust in Utah or Washington.
That would be brutal on those teams.
Lord please dont let my favorite prospect get drafted by the Sixers, but at the same time I’d rather see him go to Philly than Charlotte.
I have said it all along. Ace at 3 doesn’t excite me. Adding a strong 2way G like VJ or even Johnson(Texas) makes way more sense
That’s what I’m hoping for. Either of them over Bailey.
Ouch, that’s tough. Think I’d rather be drafted by Charlotte at this point.
Would rather see us trade PG and the third pick to a team like Utah for Lauri and the 5th
Lauri at the 4, gives us more spacing, more length, he excels at playing off ball and would be a great 3rd option.
Then with Cooper, Harper and likely VJ and Ace off the board we could be picking from Tre, Kon, Kahman and CMB. Can make an argument for all 4, Tre I think has a huge ceiling as a scorer potential all star. Kon perfect plug and play wing who almost shot a 50:40:90 in college. Kahman again huge potential and great Embiid understudy but is that what we are doing now? Lastly CMB a great defender and perfect 4 if Lauri would rather be the 3.
I think that would be a better looking side moving forward and atleast if we fail to win still have a future to look forward too.
Utah would never do that. Why would they?
Not this draft, but next year‘s draft I like it there won’t be any of these flashy ridiculous sports suits. I guess it will be khakis and dress shoes the team that drafts you you will be given a pull over polo shirt with the emblem of the team that drafted you on it in the green room
Gonna suck if he’s a shorter Josh Jackson. Gotta love just drafting “athletes”.