While we have been advocating the 76ers moving up to draft a power forward, maybe we had it wrong. Maybe they should stay at 12, if the price is too steep to move up, and take small forward Al Thornton.
Then the Sixers could get a power forward later in the draft. The Sixers were highly impressed with the workout on Wednesday of troubled Boston College 6-foot-10 forward Sean Williams. Sixers president and general manager Billy King said Williams was by far the most athletic player the team worked out in the pre-draft process.
Williams of course comes with considerable baggage. He was booted off the team at Boston College midway through the year for repeat violations of team rules.
NBA people say that if he keeps his head on straight that Williams is a sure-fire first-round talent. Certainly good enough to be taken at the 21st pick.
Yet the Sixers would have to weigh this very closely because this is a classic high-risk, high reward type of deal.
The Sixers want to be a better defensive team and Williams, who averaged five blocked shots at Boston College, would help in that area.
He won't turn 21 until September and it's possible that Williams won't be a regular rotation player right away. That's OK. Let the No. 12 pick (Thornton?) fill that role. If Williams can learn his first year, play a few minutes here and there and show that he can handle the life of an NBA player off the court, then he could be something in the future.
"He could be a future all-star," said former Sixers coach John Lucas, who has worked with Williams in Houston on his game and in helping him straighten out his life. "But he has a lot of work to do on and off the court before this can happen."
Usually teams that fare well in the draft, especially in the second part of the first round, take gambles. There would be few greater risks than selecting Williams, but it's probably something that the Sixers are at least mulling over at this late stage.
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Williams Opens Eyes
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Marc Narducci is in his 23rd year as a sports reporter for The Philadelphia Inquirer. The 2007-2008 season will be his first as the 76ers beat writer. For the past two seasons, Marc had been the backup writer for the Eagles. Over the past few years Marc covered the NBA, NHL and Major League baseball as well as writing on sports media. Prior to covering professional sports, Marc was a long-time high school sportswriter for The Inquirer's South Jersey section.
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