Philadelphia 76ers president Daryl Morey traveled to Chicago for the 2025 NBA Draft Lottery with one goal in mind: keeping his pick.
The Sixers could’ve lost their 2025 first-round pick to the Oklahoma City Thunder, depending on where they ended up on the draft board. Fortunately for Philly, the basketball gods were on their side. They kept their pick and almost won the Cooper Flagg sweepstakes before settling with the No.3 spot.
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“Once we were in the Top 4 with that group, our odds for the No.1 pick actually went high. We were at like 40 percent. Then, when Charlotte went fourth, our odds of being one jumped to almost 80 percent, and then we ended up at three, so it was definitely a roller-coaster little period that we went through,” narrated Morey in an interview with NBC Philadelphia.
Sixers move up two spots to No.3
The Sixers finished the 2024-25 NBA season with the fifth-worst record in the league (24-58) and were projected to pick fifth overall in this year’s draft — they had 10.5 percent chance of moving up to No.1.
However, had they moved lower than No.6, they would have had to convey the pick to the OKC Thunder through the 2020 trade involving Al Horford. Luckily, they ended up with the third pick, which Morey is excited about.
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“Historically, the third pick has a pretty good potential to be an All-Star level player,” added Morey. “There’s a lot of misses at three as well, so we got a lot of work to do to make sure we get this right. But historically, especially in a good draft like this with a lot of high-potential players, yeah, we get a good chance of getting a future franchise, very important player.”
Michael Jordan was drafted third overall in 1984
The No.3 overall pick in the NBA Draft has been a goldmine for all-time greats in the past. None other than the GOAT himself, Michael Jordan, was picked third overall by the Chicago Bulls in the 1984 NBA Draft. Going further back, Boston Celtics legends Bob Cousy and Kevin McHale, plus “Pistol” Pete Maravich, were also No.3 picks in their respective draft classes.
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In the later eras, the likes of Penny Hardaway, Grant Hill, Jerry Stackhouse, Carmelo Anthony, Pau Gasol, James Harden, Jaylen Brown and Jayson Tatum were also picked third overall in their respective drafts. Even Morey’s current star, Joel Embiid was the team’s No.3 pick in the 2014 NBA Draft.
As it stands right now, the Sixers will likely be picking between Ace Bailey, Dylan Harper or VJ Edgecombe. Either way, they’re going to get a very talented player to add to their core of Embiid, Paul George and Tyrese Maxey.
The luck of the lottery went Morey’s way. Had it not, some argued his job would’ve been in jeopardy, with the organization not having a clear vision for the future due to Embiid’s health issues and George’s underwhelming first season in Philly.
Some are speculating that they could even trade the pick and bring in another star player to complement their veteran core. Other things going with a young prospect is the way to go. Either way, the Sixers have to play their cards right.