Fit, be damned! The Philadelphia 76ers selected Baylor guard VJ Edgecombe with the No. 3 pick in the NBA Draft on Wednesday, and if your first reaction to that news is to question Edgecombe's fit next to Tyrese Maxey, Jared McCain and potentially Quentin Grimes (who is a restricted free agent this summer), you're not alone. I am also questioning the fit, but I still believe Philadelphia took the right approach here. If a team has a top-five pick, they should take who they believe is the best player available — always — and figure out fit, spacing and everything else later.
When Edgecombe throws down a monster dunk in Summer League then picks the pocket of a fellow rookie, Philly fans will forget all about "fit."
Edgecombe was pretty dang good in his one year at Baylor, scoring consistently, bringing chaos on defense every night and shooting well enough (34 percent from 3-point) to believe he can at least be passable from deep in the NBA. He's a monster on defense, and brings more explosive athleticism than the rest of Philly's backcourt.
But how does Edgecombe actually factoe into Philly's plans?
Projected Sixers lineup after drafting VJ Edgecombe No. 3 overall
Position | Starter | Bench |
|---|---|---|
Point guard | Tyrese Maxey | VJ Edgecombe |
Shooting guard | Quentin Grimes | Jared McCain |
Small forward | Paul George | Justin Edwards |
Power forward | Kelly Oubre Jr. | Guerschon Yabusele |
Center | Joel Embiid | Adem Bona |
At least to start, I see Edgecombe coming off the bench with Jared McCain — a potentially very fun backup guard rotation in Philly. I'm the leader of the Quentin Grimes fan club, to be fair, but Grimes was so good in Philly last year, and I think his experience gives him the starting edge over the young guys. A Maxey and Edgecombe backcourt will get plenty of minutes, though, and man will that be fun.
Sixers roster looks promising...
...I'm just saying! Theoretically, this is a team that could make noise in the playoffs. Of course, we're talking about the most chaotic (some might say cursed) franchise in pro sports here, so nothing is certain. But that guard rotation has depth, scoring and Edgecombe brings some real defensive chops. Paul George basically can't be worse than last year, and a leap from Justin Edwards isn't far-fetched, either.
Kelly Oubre Jr. has an $8 million player option that I assume he picks up, and Daryl Morey should do everything in his power to bring back Guerschon Yabusele, who was one of the most fun surprises of last season.
Joel Embiid's health will determine Sixers success again
As is the case most summers, the Sixers will go as far as Joel Embiid takes them. Without him at full strength, the guard depth, a bounceback year from PG13 and a Justin Edwards leap aren't enough to lift this team to a deep postseason. Embiid had surgery in April and the team seemingly wants him to be ready for the start of next season. Philadelphia doesn't have any choice but to hope Embiid can regain his MVP form. Trading him is probably impossible with his extensive injury history and massive contract, so the Sixers are left with just one option: hope for the best.