In the 2014 NBA Draft, the Philadelphia 76ers are trying to make their already great draft even better. Philly is trying to acquire the no. 1 overall pick in the 2014 NBA Draft from the Cleveland Cavaliers to secure freshman phenom guard from the Kansas Jayhawks, Andrew Wiggins.
The Philadelphia 76ers, already with a plethora of picks in the 2014 NBA Draft including two top-10 picks at 3 and 10, also have the most picks in the 2014 draft with 7 in total. The Sixers are trying to poise themselves to absolutely securing Wiggins by getting the first pick from the Cavs.
As reported by ESPN, the Sixers are trying to get the first overall pick by trading their 3rd and 10th overall pick for the Cavs no.1 overall or trading the 3rd overall and wing forward Thaddeus Young.
Sixers are trying to set up a potential starting lineup for next season which could include the reigning Rookie of the Year Michael Carter-Williams, who appears to be a Magic Johnson clone, lottery pick from 2013 Nerlens Noel, who missed all of 2013 due to injury, and Andrew Wiggins. This is a potentially devastating lineup for not only next year, but also years to come.
The 10th pick is interesting as well. If the Sixers are able to acquire Wiggins, without giving up that pick, then they sit in a very good spot at 10 with a few options. I wouldn’t see them taking another guard there but instead drafting a player that could play down low alongside Nerlens Noel with Thaddeus Young sent out of town in this proposed deal. The 10th pick could be a good spot for them to potentially trade up or down to acquire a player like Aaron Gordon, Dario Saric, Noah Vonleh or even Julius Randle. Randle’s stock may fall due to the news about him needing foot surgery and potentially missing 2 months but he has an enormous amount of talent. Gordon and Randle seem to make the most sense for the direction the Sixers look to be headed.
A potential Sixers lineup for next season could be: Michael Carter-Williams, Andrew Wiggins, Jason Richardson (if Richardson chooses to exercise his player option) Aaron Gordon/Julius Randle and Nerlens Noel.
We’re talking about a lineup with possibly four players that were in the top 10 in every recruiting class and draft board over the last three years. Also, don’t forget that the Sixers will only have four guaranteed contracts going into this offseason, taking up about 10 million dollars in cap room. Look for the “Sixers” to be the top NBA search this offseason.
The flipside to this is what about the Cavaliers? The Cavs seem to not want to tank and want to make a move now. Reportedly offering Kyrie Irving a max contract extension and also being one of the teams in the LeBron James Sweepstakes, Cleveland also needs to make an impact move to be a contender in the NBA again.
All reports indicate that the Cavs want Wiggins or Jayhawks teammate Joel Embiid with whatever top-pick in the 2014 NBA Draft they have. The Bucks have the second pick and seem to be all about either Wiggins or Duke superstar guard Jabari Parker. Parker is reported to be the favorite in Milwaukee to potentially be the cornerstone for the future at the Bradley Center.
The other interesting piece is Kevin Love. The Cavs have already said they’re willing to acquire The Minnesota Timberwolves forward, even if he doesn’t sign an extension. If Cleveland can trade the first pick with a mixture of either Tristan Thompson, Dion Waiters, Anthony Bennett or Tyler Zeller, then the Timberwolves might be very willing to hand over their best player in the last 10 years of the franchise.
