Philadelphia 76ers: 3 second-round steals at pick 50

Joel Ayayi could be a viable effort guy for the Philadelphia 76ers.

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Ah, another Gonzaga prospect. Hmm… they must be pretty good, huh?

While landing a player like Filip Petrusev could be a boon for size, shooting, and defensive rebounding when Joel Embiid is off the court, his former teammate, Joel Ayayi, is all about energy, effort, and collegiate pedigree at both ends of the court.

Another French shooting guard – which is another trend, I guess – Ayayi is a decent enough shooter from beyond the arc, a competent on-ball defender, and an actually pretty darn good rebounder for his position. He improved his scoring numbers in each of his three seasons with the Bulldogs, and while he may not be a certified star, he has the NBA size to play at the two professionally.

But those skills alone aren’t why you draft Ayayi. Even at pick 50 there are surely better shooters, defenders, and even rebounders – as you will soon see – but if Ayayi slips down the bottom third of the second round, general managers would be hard-pressed to find a guard more willing to attack the basket with ruthless aggression.

Seriously, did you watch Gonzaga at all during the NCAA Tournament? Ayayi threw down tomahawk dunks on the reg and absolutely dominated the UCLA Bruins with a 22 point performance in 42 minutes of action to secure his squad a trip to the Finals.

If the Philadelphia 76ers’ brass likes Rayjon Tucker, they would absolutely love Joel Ayayi, even if having a pair of French-speaking players named Joel may get a tad confusing.

Eh, oh well. Good problem to have, I guess.