Balancing immediate championship windows with long-term growth, Philadelphia could target versatile prospects like Chris Cenac Jr. and Allen Graves to bolster defensive flexibility and floor spacing around their stars
Mike Gansey did not reveal much when discussing the Philadelphia 76ers’ approach to the No. 22 pick, but his answer still offered a useful window into how the team may view the draft.
In a recent conference, Gansey said the Sixers want “a combination of best player available and fit with our roster.”
That is a cookie-cutter answer, but it matters for Philadelphia because the roster is in a strange place. The Sixers are not fully rebuilding, but they also cannot draft only for immediate need. Joel Embiid and Paul George bring win-now pressure if both remain on the roster, while Tyrese Maxey and VJ Edgecombe give Philadelphia a younger foundation to think about long term.
The Sixers need someone who can help the current roster without being limited to the current version of the team. They need shooting, athleticism, defensive versatility, and players who can fit around multiple timelines. Two prospects who make sense in that conversation are Chris Cenac Jr. and Allen Graves.
Cenac is the higher-upside swing.
At 6-foot-11, he has the size and mobility to become the kind of modern big man Philadelphia has lacked behind Embiid. His appeal starts defensively. Cenac has the tools to move in space, switch across positions, and cover ground in ways traditional backup centers cannot. That matters because one of the Sixers’ biggest roster problems has been their lack of a different defensive look when Embiid is either off the floor or limited physically.
Offensively, Cenac is still raw, but that is also part of the intrigue. He does not have one defining skill yet, but he flashes touch, finishing, rebounding, vertical athleticism, and some perimeter potential.
If Gansey wants to balance best player available with roster fit, Cenac checks both boxes. He may not be the safest prospect, but his ceiling fits the direction the Sixers should want to move: younger, more athletic, and more defensively flexible.
Graves offers a different kind of appeal.
He is not the same physical upside play as Cenac, but his statistical profile and skill set are easy to like. Graves was productive at Santa Clara despite coming off the bench, showing shooting, rebounding, defensive playmaking, and a strong feel for the game. His three-point shooting is especially important for Philadelphia. A forward who can space the floor, make quick decisions, and defend with activity is exactly the kind of role player the Sixers have struggled to consistently find.
The concern is his upside. Graves may be more of a high-IQ rotation forward than a star-level swing. But at No. 22, that is not a bad outcome. The Sixers do not need to chase a home run if the board does not present one, drafting a solid player would do wonders for their roster.
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Wes Dixon is a contributing writer to 76ersRoundtable. He can be reached at [email protected].
