Grading the Philadelphia 76ers’ 2021 NBA Draft class
Filip Petrusev could be a lot of fun… if he actually plays in the NBA in 2021.
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And with the 50th overall pick in the 2021 NBA Draft, the Philadelphia 76ers select Filip Petrusev, a 6-foot-10 ex-member of the Gonzaga Bulldogs who most recently played for the KK Mega Basket in the ABA.
On paper, Petrusev is just what the doctor ordered. He’s a good rebounder, an even better scorer around the rim, and a rapidly improving 3 point shooter who found incredible success during his first season playing in the ABA; a season that earned him ABA League MVP, ABA League Top Prospect, and ABA League Top Scorer awards.
At 21-years-old, Petrusev is notably older than Jaden Springer and has already shown incredible strides from his first season with Gonzaga to his most recent one in Serbia. With some additional seasoning in the G-League under head coach Connor Johnson, maybe Petrusev could be a viable player for the Sixers by the trade deadline.
Or, ya know, maybe the team could just strand him in Serbia like it’s 2014, and Sam Hinkie is still the team’s GM.
That’s right, according to Rich Hofmann of the Athletic and Daryl Morey himself, Petrusev may stick around with Mega Basket for the 2021-22 season, even if he joins the team for Summer League in Vegas later this summer.
If that happens, it’s hard to be too excited about Petrusev as an immediate draft pick, as he just won’t be around to play well or poorly.
Is Petrusev the next Dario Saric or the next Vasilije Micić, a player the Sixers draft, stash, and then trade away before playing a single snap with the team? That, my friends, is the $2 million question, especially when Kentucky forward BJ Boston came off the board one pick later.
Grade: C-