Sixers Draft Florida’s Speights
The 76ers drafted forward Marreese Speights with the 16th pick in the NBA draft last night.
Speights, 6-foot-10, 245 pounds, averaged 14.5 points and 8.1 rebounds last season as a sophomore at Florida. The Sixers hope he can play both power forward and center.
“We don’t see him as a major impact this year; we hope next year he’ll be able to get more playing time,” Sixers assistant general manager Tony DiLeo told the Associated Press. “We’re hoping by next year he can play major minutes.”
That is a shame - as the Sixers, while a surprise playoff team, seemed not to be able to handle the playoff grind. There is no doubt that another quality big man could really help this team and with $11 million to play with under the salary cap, GM Ed Stafanski may be able to get someone in there who can help immediately.