2018 NBA Draft: Wheeling-And-Dealing Brett Brown Confuses Sixers Nation
By Titus Falodun
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PHILADELPHIA (CBS) — Many people in the Philadelphia-area are still scratching their heads as they digest what Brett Brown and the Sixers did on draft night.
If Sixers interim GM and Head Coach Brown wanted to make his mark as a front office executive, he surely did so with the moves made on Thursday night.
Brown started the night pleasing Sixers fans with the selection of Malvern, Pennsylvania-native and Villanova forward Mikal Bridges.
But that is where the excitement ended as Brown and the Sixers draft brass moved Bridges for Phoenix Suns' 16th overall pick Zhaire Smith, of Texas Tech, and an unprotected 2021 first round pick.
According to Brown, the move provided the Sixers a 3-and-D player they really liked, in addition to a 2021 first round pick that they hope to use to get an already established star in the league.
"We are star hunting or star developing," Brown said. "That's how you win a championship."
Well, if that is how you win a championship, then the Sixers must acquire one of the big name talents this summer, next season or next summer.
If not, Brown's draft looks like a big gamble that may take years to determine the outcome.
For now, the draft played out as very lackluster without any real idea what these picks will bring to the team as they all seem to be long-term projects.
Simply put, it is hard to find a clear standout with a defined role that can immediately and significantly help this team that made a second round exit in the NBA playoffs after a 52-win regular season.
Regardless, Brown has just put himself on the map, for better or worse.
