The Philadelphia 76ers landed Alabama star Labaron Philon Jr. with the No. 22 overall pick in Tuesday’s draft. The Sixers now have a legitimate backup guard to both Tyrese Maxey and VJ Edgecombe as well as setting up a possibility for 3-guard lineups in the future.
Philon made big strides in his sophomore season as he averaged 22.0 points and 5.0 assists while shooting 39.9% from deep on 6.2 attempts per game. One can see the reason why Philadelphia selected him at this point in the offseason as it looks to build up the roster for the future.
The Athletic gave out its grade for each team’s draft and the Sixers received a B for the Philon addition:
Philon is an awesome value for a team that needed more ballhandling in the backcourt behind Tyrese Maxey. Yes, Philon is slight. I have some concerns about his upside on a winning team because of that. But he was remarkably productive this season at Alabama and has an inherent creativity to his game. I would rather have him on a four-year rookie scale contract than McCain with two years left on his, plus the 76ers got three additional second-rounders in the deal. Philon is at least going to be a valuable backup guard with potential to become a starter, especially if he can get back to the level he was at defensively for Alabama as a freshman, as opposed to having to carry the load offensively as a sophomore.
Philon is an awesome value for a team that needed more ballhandling in the backcourt behind Tyrese Maxey. Yes, Philon is slight. I have some concerns about his upside on a winning team because of that. But he was remarkably productive this season at Alabama and has an inherent creativity to his game. I would rather have him on a four-year rookie scale contract than McCain with two years left on his, plus the 76ers got three additional second-rounders in the deal. Philon is at least going to be a valuable backup guard with potential to become a starter, especially if he can get back to the level he was at defensively for Alabama as a freshman, as opposed to having to carry the load offensively as a sophomore.
It remains to be seen how Philon will fit in on this group defensively as he is on the slighter side, but he is a player who will find a way to make an impact. He has a high basketball IQ and a maniacal work ethic, just like Maxey and Edgecombe, and one has to believe he will figure it out. Philon fills a lot of needs for the Sixers and it will be on the organization now to figure out how to make it all fit.
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