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PHILADELPHIA — The Philadelphia 76ers don’t have the playoffs to look forward to in the spring and summer of 2025. Instead, they have the NBA Draft…maybe. Although they own the 35th overall pick, which is a good selection for the second round, they have to see if they get their first-round pick this year.
Their selection is top-six protected and will convey to the Oklahoma City Thunder if it falls out of that range. The Sixers have the fifth-best odds, so they are more likely to keep it than lose it, though they would owe next year's pick to the Thunder (top-four protected) if this pick doesn’t convey to them. Daryl Morey didn’t mince words about what his team's strategy would be if the 2025 pick stays with Philadelphia.
“Definitely best player available,” Morey said of the player the Sixers intend to draft. “It has to be that high in the draft, for sure. But we see the pick as sort of a tool to upgrade the team and obviously, it'll depend, it'll matter if it's one, two, three, four, five or six [overall] — or we just have the pick in the future. [That] could also happen.
“It's just a tool to make the team better but obviously, there's a good chance we'll take someone. In that case, it will just be the best player. I've never shied away from that.”
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76ers own 5th-best odds in 2025 NBA Draft lottery
The lottery, scheduled for Monday, May 12, will determine what pick the 76ers land and who they could likely take. Cooper Flagg is obviously going first overall, no matter who lands the top pick. Dylan Harper is firmly the second-best prospect in the eyes of most evaluators. After that, there’s plenty of room for debate for prospects such as Ace Bailey, V.J. Edgecombe, Kon Knueppel, Tre Johnson and Khaman Maluach.
Morey's drafting record with the Sixers is impressive. The selections of Tyrese Maxey with the 21st pick in 2020 and Jared McCain with the 16th pick in 2024 show he and his scouting department have sharp eyes for young talent. Even some of his second-round selections — Isaiah Joe at pick no. 49, Paul Reed at 58, Adem Bona at 41 — are pretty good.
If the Sixers keep their first-round pick, it will be the easiest selection Morey will have in his tenure as Sixers president of basketball operations. But it also has the biggest stakes riding on it. Whatever happens with this pick could very likely determine the future of the team.
