The Philadelphia 76ers will have plenty of avenues to turn to when they head into the 2025 NBA draft. They will hold the No. 3 overall pick which is a powerful tool for a team to have in its quest to bounce back from a miserable season.
The Sixers, especially, will be looking for the best player available regardless of position. President of Basketball Operations Daryl Morey knows this team needs an injection of young talent, so adding a player with the stature of Ace Bailey, VJ Edgecombe, or Tre Johnson would be a big help.
While Bailey and Edgecombe have dominated the headlines in terms of that No. 3 pick, one has to wonder if there is another name that will steal some headlines: Johnson.
A mock draft performed by CBS Sports has Philadelphia taking the high-scoring guard out of Texas with that 3rd pick:
There’s some thought that the Sixers could try to move this pick for a veteran given where former MVP Joel Embiid is in his career. That’s understandable. But if the Sixers do execute the pick, they shouldn’t let the presence of talented young guards like Tyrese Maxey and Jared McCain on their roster steer them away from Johnson, the player I believe is the third best prospect in this draft. The one-and-done athlete from Texas led all freshmen in scoring while shooting 39.7% from 3-point range on 6.8 attempts per contest. Impressive numbers, all around. And most of them are the types of numbers that should translate well to the next level.
Johnson is a guy who hasn’t been talked about much for the No. 3 pick, but he deserves at least a look with this selection. He is a supreme 3-level scorer and somebody who can take games over in the blink of an eye. As the Sixers move forward with this draft process, they will have a lot of work to do in terms of the research needed to make the right choice. There are a lot of options to choos from.
