2026 NBA Mock Draft Links Philadelphia 76ers to European Center

The Philadelphia 76ers have a first-round pick in the 2026 NBA Draft because of the trade that sent Jared McCain to the Oklahoma City Thunder.

While McCain's performance in recent weeks is greatly outweighing the value of a selection projected to be in the mid-20s, there should be plenty of intriguing prospects available when Philadelphia is on the clock. This draft class is praised as one of the deepest in recent memory.

CBS Sports' latest mock draft sees the 76ers select North Carolina Tar Heels junior center Henri Veesaar with the No. 24 pick.

"Veesaar is a big center who can hold his own on the interior on both ends and shown himself a capable floor-spacer," CBS Sports' Kyle Boone wrote. "He's hitting above 43% on 3-pointers this season and projects as a high-floor prospect."

Veesaar spent two seasons with the Arizona Wildcats before joining the Tar Heels this season. He is averaging 16.7 points, 8.4 rebounds, and 1.2 blocks on 61.0% shooting and 41.8% shooting from three-point range in 27 appearances for North Carolina.

The 7-foot, 225-pound big man from Estonia is an enticing offensive player. He's quite mobile for his size and is able to stretch the floor at a high level. He can score the ball on all three levels, as he can use his length to score inside while having a smooth shot from the mid-range and beyond the arc.

Defensively is where Veesaar is a bit less polished, as he lacks discipline and physicality at times.

Despite spending three seasons in college, Veesaar would be a bit of a longer-term project than some of the other big men available around Philadelphia's pick.

With that said, the 76ers may be able to afford to wait a year or two to get solid production from the 21-year-old. They, of course, have Joel Embiid as well as Andre Drummond and Adem Bona holding down the center position. Although it's worth noting Drummond could leave in free agency this offseason.

Veesaar certainly displays a lot of positive traits, but the 76ers may opt for someone a bit more prepared to contribute from the get-go.

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Anthony Pasciolla is the publisher of 76ersRoundtable. He can be reached via email at ampasciolla@gmail.com or followed on X @AnthonyPasci.