For two consecutive years now, Sam Hinkie and the Sixers front-office appear to have gotten the best value picks in the entire draft. They drafted eventual rookie of the year Michael Carter-Williams with the 11th pick in the 2013 NBA Draft and found a diamond in the ruff with 2014-15 rookie of the year candidate K.J. McDaniels, who they drafted with the 32nd overall pick in this year’s draft. Believe what you want about whether what the Sixers are doing is ethical or unethical, but it’s hard to say that the the pieces that the team is drafting and putting in position to be franchise cornerstones aren’t showing their potential.

Sure, Nerlens Noel is Nerlens Noel. He’s been very effective defensively and looks extremely raw offensively. We knew that was the case going in. Joel Embiid, who many think may ultimately be the best player out of the Sixers’ run of high draft-picks, is still recovering from a navicular bone injury to his right foot, which may keep him out for the entire season. Those two have high ceilings athletically, but Noel’s offensive inconsistencies and Embiid’s health risks are major questions in the Sixers plan. Their future success, mixed with how the Sixers continue to draft, may ultimately determine the success of Hinkie’s plan.

Dario Saric, who the Sixers aquired from the Magic after they selected him with the 12th overall pick in last year’s draft, may also go a great way in determining the team’s success. Saric, who will likely play for his Turkish team Anadolu Efes for another season, gave Sixers fans a reason to be excited last night, when this video of him forcing a turnover and then finishing a game-winning lay-up surfaced.



It would be one thing to continue to bash the Sixers’ plan if they weren’t drafting well, but they seem to have hit a homerun in their first two drafts. If you expect that every player that the team takes is going to be a superstar, you are foolish. But MCW and K.J. McDaniels have been great picks, Noel looks like he will be some sort of piece for the team if he is here long-term, Embiid is still getting healthy and Saric looks like he will be another cog when the Sixers’ plan starts to turn torwards success.

The Turkish league isn’t the NBA, but Saric appears to be another asset that Sam Hinkie has just waiting in the wings. #TogetherWeBuild