Philadelphia 76ers 2025 Mock Draft: What’s the path forward for this team?

The Philadelphia 76ers are 9-17, which places 12th in the not-so-competitive Eastern Conference. Not much has gone right for the Sixers, who have dealt with injury upon injury, and setback upon setback. Tonight's matchup against the San Antonio Spurs will mark just the fifth time all season that Joel Embiid, Tyrese Maxey, and Paul George share the court.

Daryl Morey and the front office have their hands tied a bit. This team is too talented to tank at full health, but there's too much uncertainty to project them as a contender. With so much salary on the books already, it's not like Morey has the maneuverability to add another star, nor even the flexibility to add more than one or two impact role players at the trade deadline, if he's lucky.

Nick Nurse has been similarly hamstrung by these unfortunate circumstances. His offense has long revolved around heliocentric stars who can collapse a defense and generate spontaneous advantages. Right now, the Sixers rank near the bottom of the NBA in several key metrics. It's just too stagnant when the stars aren't available, and especially when Embiid is not available.

There is still plenty of time for Philadelphia to turn this season around. The decrepit state of the East means that right now, the 76ers are just four games out of the sixth seed, which is currently held by a Miami Heat team openly shopping its best player. Embiid seems to be trending in a positive direction with his knee (knocks on every wooden surface in a one mile radius) and George's presence has been extremely helpful, even when he's not shooting particularly well.

If the 76ers can't turn this ship around, however — if the hits simply become insurmountable — the best possible outcome for this season is a complete bottoming out. Philadelphia's first-round pick is top-six protected in a loaded draft class, which means the first-place Oklahoma City Thunder receive it if it lands in the 7-30 range.

Philadelphia 76ers 2025 mock draft: Cooper Flagg is the dream, but the options are bountiful

Right now, Philadelphia occupies the seventh-best lottery odds, which means a chalk lottery would send the pick to OKC. That is pure nightmare fuel for 76ers fans, not to mention the rest of the Western Conference. The last thing the Thunder need is another budding star on a team-controlled, affordable contract.

If the 76ers get lucky, however, there are still decent odds to leap into the top four. Yours truly discussed potential Philadelphia draft outcomes with Ben Pfeifer on The Sixer Sense Podcast.

I am going to operate with complete transparency here. My first Tankathon lottery simulation resulted in Philadelphia falling right at No. 7, sending a premium prospect to the great state of Oklahoma. Since the 76ers also don't own their second-round pick this season, that wouldn't make for much of a mock draft. Morey can always trade into the second round — maybe even the first round — but again, the 76ers' trade ammo is limited these days.

The second simulation, however, launched Philadelphia all the way to the No. 1 pick in next summer's NBA Draft. There is only one real way to do this "mock draft," and that is looking at a few logical outcomes based on draft range.

There has been mounting suspicion on the Cooper Flagg front as his 3-point shot falters and his lottery counterparts dominate. Dylan Harper and Kasparas Jakucionis have both made compelling cases of their own, while some are bound to fall for Ace Bailey's unique combination of size and shot-making talent.

At the end of the day, though, Flagg is still 17 years old and finding ways to impact winning at a high level for college basketball's premier program. He's an all-world defender in the making, blessed with a 6-foot-9 frame to grow into and razor-sharp instincts. The 3s need to fall more consistently, but he's handling a heavy on-ball workload and showcasing plenty of upside as a do-it-all wing.

For now, he remains the obvious No. 1 pick, and he's the perfect fifth starter on paper for a Philadelphia team in need of size, physicality, and connective passing in the power forward slot.

If the Philadelphia 76ers land at No. 2...

My pick would be Dylan Harper of Rutgers, whose strong 6-foot-6 frame offers unique versatility for a point guard-by-trade. The 76ers don't necessarily need another guard, but Harper's scalable approach, dynamic rim pressure, and all-around malleability — not to mention the outright dominance of college basketball at 18 years old — makes for a compelling fit all the same. He can share the court with Tyrese Maxey and Jared McCain.

If the Philadelphia 76ers land in the 3-6 range...

The dream outcome is Kasparas Jakucionis, who is another jumbo point guard with impressive feel and advantage creation. Jakucionis doesn't quite reach the same heights as Harper on defense, but he's a heady all-around player who shoots a gorgeous pull-up jumper and breaks out a few head-spinning passes every night.

Other candidates worth monitoring include Baylor's VJ Edgecombe, a defensive wrecking ball on the wing who would benefit from Philadelphia's stable network of creators, and Duke's Khaman Maluach, who could provide a long-term succession plan behind Joel Embiid. The cleanest fit of all, however, is another Duke product, Kon Knueppel, whose 3-point shooting and connective playmaking would plug seamlessly into Philadelphia's lineup.