The Philadelphia 76ers hold the No. 3 pick in the 2025 NBA draft and there is no real clarity with what they plan to do with the selection. The Sixers have a couple of different avenues with which they can go down on June 25, but which one should they go down?
President of Basketball Operations Daryl Morey and his staff have been doing their due diligence on a lot of the prospects to decide on. The popular names with at No. 3 have been Rutgers star Ace Bailey and Baylor’s VJ Edgecombe, but the Sixers could also go in the Tre Johnson direction or even Kon Knueppel, while a trade down is an option as well.
Now is the time to do a quick dive into what the Sixers could do on draft night knowing everything we know now:
Bailey still an option despite not working out
The Sixers had a workout scheduled with Bailey, but the collegiate star canceled it at the last minute. However, that shouldn’t deter Morey and his staff from selecting him if they see fit. He has a ton of star upside when considering his offensive work in his lone season with the Scarlet Knights. The Sixers selected Tyrese Maxey in 2020 and Jared McCain in 2024 without getting a workout with either player. Morey and the front office is not afraid of a lack of a workout and the Sixers will do what is best for them.
Do the Sixers need a star at No. 3?
Not necessarily. No matter who they draft, the focus will be on the health of Joel Embiid, Paul George, and Maxey which will decide how far Philadelphia goes in 2025-26. Whoever the Sixers pick at No. 3–should they stay there–whether it be Bailey, Edgecombe, or whoever, it comes down to the team’s Big 3 in which they have a lot of money committed to in the long term. The selection should be about the fit next to the stars and a guy like Edgecombe fits that mold as somebody who can be a pest defensively, knock down an open 3, and be a star in the transition game running alongside Maxey and McCain. A selection of Edgecombe would make Philadelphia a faster team.
Trade down options
Morey is never afraid to pull the trigger on a trade he sees will fit his team in the long term. If Philadelphia isn’t happy with the options at No. 3, then it should absolutely trade down and acquire more draft assets for the future as well as create more cap flexibility. At this stage, the best trade partners are the Washington Wizards (No. 6), New Orleans Pelicans (No. 7), and Brooklyn Nets (No. 8). The Sixers can acquire two picks (6 and 18) from the Wizards for No. 3 while they can get a win-now player from both New Orleans (Herb Jones, for example) and Brooklyn (Cam Johnson) along with the top 10 selections in exchange for No. 3. There is a lot that the Sixers can do so it will be interesting to see what goes down before Round 1 of the draft.
Also, it’s important to note that the priority for the Sixers is to re-sign both Quentin Grimes and Guerschon Yabusele. In order to do that, they have to create more cap space which is what they will do by trading out of No. 3. The rookie scale contract for the No. 3 pick is somewhere around $11 million so the Sixers can create more wiggle room while gaining more assets, then this can be the move.
The Paul George-Utah Jazz connection
A report/hypothetical came about earlier in the week when Utah Jazz insider Andy Larsen of The Salt Lake Tribune hopped on the “Locked on Jazz” podcast and stated this about a possible Paul George to the Jazz connection:
I do think it’s true that the Philadelphia 76ers are interested in trading down to No.5, potentially, if they can get off the Paul George deal. I don’t think necessarily that may not make sense for the Jazz given how long that contract is and how iffy Paul George was. I don’t think the Jazz are going to take that offer, but I do think that’s an offer that’s been presented.
If the Sixers can get off the George deal, then great! However, Sixers Wire is going to throw a little cold water on it–and Larsen even threw some cold water himself on it on the podcast. Of course, anything can change, but the sense is that Philadelphia is committed to the star trio for the foreseeable future and believe they can lead the Sixers on a deep playoff run with a little bit of injury luck. Of course, that’s a big *if* in terms of the injuries, but Philadelphia believes a little bit of health will go a long way in 2025-26.
