76ers Draft Labaron Philon at No. 22: Good Value, Crowded Backcourt

The 76ers used the No. 22 overall pick in Tuesday’s NBA draft on Alabama guard Labaron Philon Jr., the first selection of the Mike Gansey era and a bet on offensive talent over clean roster fit.

Gansey, hired earlier this month to replace Daryl Morey, ran his last draft as general manager of the Cleveland Cavaliers. His opening move in Philadelphia was to take the player most boards had going earlier than 22. CBS Sports ranked Philon as the 14th-best prospect in the class. ESPN’s Bobby Marks said before the draft he didn’t expect Philon to slip past No. 17. Fran Fraschilla went further, floating him as a possible best point guard in the entire class.

So on talent, this is value. The complications come after.

What the 76ers got in Philon

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Philon is a 20-year-old guard out of Mobile, Alabama, who turned himself into one of college basketball’s most productive offensive players as a sophomore. He averaged 22.0 points, 5.0 assists, 3.5 rebounds and 1.2 steals, shooting just over 50% from the field and 39.9% from three on 6.2 attempts per game. He earned First Team All-SEC and Third Team All-American honors and led the Crimson Tide in scoring.

The jump from year one to year two is the selling point. As a freshman he averaged 10.6 points and shot 31.5% from deep. He declared for the 2025 draft, withdrew, returned to Alabama under Nate Oats, and came back as a higher-usage primary creator who more than doubled his scoring while improving his efficiency. His usage rate climbed from 20.9% to 30.0%, and his three-point shooting jumped more than eight points.

The scouting reports center on his handle and craft, a shifty ball-handler who manipulates defenders and gets to the rim, where he went from a poor finisher as a freshman to a strong one as a sophomore. The comparisons floating around range from Mike Conley to Darius Garland.

The knock is size. Philon measured 6’2.5″ without shoes and 176 pounds at the combine, and he added almost no weight between his two college seasons. His defense, which graded well as a freshman, slipped as he took on the offensive load. How he holds up physically and defensively at the next level is the open question on his ceiling.

The fit and the value for the 76ers

Here’s where the groans come from. The 76ers already have their backcourt of the future in Tyrese Maxey, an All-NBA Third Team guard who led the NBA in minutes, and VJ Edgecombe, the No. 3 pick last year who finished third in Rookie of the Year voting. Philon is a third guard behind them, not a starter.

That’s not nothing. A lack of reliable bench ball-handling hurt the 76ers in the postseason, and a capable third guard could take minutes off Maxey’s plate. Philon said the fit is exactly why he’s happy about it, calling the landing spot “destiny” given the two guards already in place.

Gansey leaned on both value and need. “He’s got some toughness,” Gansey said. “He plays with an edge, he plays with a swag, he’s not afraid.” He added that the Sixers were “very, very excited he was there.”

The pick itself traces back to February, when the previous front office traded 2024 first-rounder Jared McCain to the Oklahoma City Thunder. This was the biggest asset in that deal. Quentin Grimes, the other backcourt depth piece, is an unrestricted free agent. The 76ers hold no second-round picks Wednesday, though Gansey said they’d be aggressive exploring options.

The bigger picture

This is a roster still anchored by max contracts for Maxey, Joel Embiid and Paul George, and a roster that needs Embiid and George on the floor to matter. Embiid has battled availability, and George missed significant time including a 50-game suspension for violating the league’s anti-drug policy. The 76ers went 45-37, finished seventh in the East, rallied past Boston in the first round after going down 3-1, then got swept by the eventual-champion Knicks.

Against that backdrop, the Philon pick is a low-risk swing on a skilled offensive guard who fell further than his tape said he should. Whether it moves the needle depends on a frontcourt that has nothing to do with him.