GM: 76ers keeping No. 1 pick

The Philadelphia 76ers won the No. 1 pick in Tuesday’s NBA Draft lottery, and general manager Bryan Colangelo immediately squashed speculation that they might trade it. He even said that the Sixers’ decision on this subject is “obvious,” via DraftExpress’ Jonathan Givony:

Q: Are you committed to keeping that number one pick or are you open to trading it?

Colangelo: It’s pretty obvious that the answer is yes [to keeping it]. A lot of people jumped on the notion that we talked about looking at all alternatives as open to moving the pick. I think, again, you have to look at every single option and everything in front of you. But, the bottom line is, now that we’re sitting in the No. 1 position, it changes the dynamic. I think it was more in reference to, what would happen if we ended up with two top-five picks, if there was maybe, perhaps, a decision to move one of those. It’s highly unlikely that anything is done with the No. 1 pick except selecting the player.

General managers almost never say never, and Colangelo hedged a little by saying “highly unlikely” at the end. Essentially, he is saying that he would need to be blown away by a deal to relinquish the top pick.

This is the right approach. Unless Philadelphia has an opportunity to acquire a superstar, its best bet is to add the best prospect possible and then let him grow with its other young players. Reportedly, the Sixers are leaning toward taking Ben Simmons out of LSU, but Duke’s Brandon Ingram is also a possibility.

The No. 1 pick is almost never traded — it took LeBron James returning to Cleveland and Kevin Love wanting out of Minnesota for the Cavaliers to move Andrew Wiggins two years ago — and there’s no real reason for Philadelphia to be the exception to the rule. With the rising salary cap, rookie-scale contracts are more valuable than ever, and there are two compelling choices at the top of the draft this year. The Sixers do not need to overthink this.

Sixers coach Brett Brown celebrates winning the lottery. USATSI

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