CAMDEN — It’s February 28 and the Sixers are likely settling in for the night in Boston, a tip-off against the Celtics in TD Garden awaiting them on March 1.
Some 900 miles away in Knoxville, Tennessee, Mike Gansey, then an executive for the Cleveland Cavaliers, is taking in a thriller between Alabama and Tennessee.
Labaron Philon Jr. is coming off the bench for the Crimson Tide. Nate Oats’ team trails by as many as 13 points in hostile territory.
And then Philon explodes for 14 of his 23 points in the second half, connecting on a jumper with 22.8 seconds left to give ‘Bama a lead they would never relinquish.
“He just finds a way,” Gansey said.
To Gansey, it felt like he scored 20 straight points.
“I remember I saw him this year at Tennessee and he didn’t start that game. I think he missed the game before and, I don’t know, he scored like their last 20 points of the game and helped them win it,” Gansey recalled after his first decision as the Sixers’ new president of basketball operations.
“It was just like, ‘Woah, this dude is not afraid.’ He was just ‘Give me the ball, get out of the way. I’m going to win this game.’ And that just showed me some toughness. Mental toughness, too.”
Might it have been the game that landed Philon in Philadelphia with the 22nd overall pick in Tuesday’s draft?
They had him ranked higher than that, too. He, by Gansey’s admission, fell in their laps. They were a little surprised to see Philon available when it was their turn.
Gansey noted that Philon was the target, the focal point of the opposing defense’s scouting report, in the SEC, where athleticism and length rule the day. He highlighted that Philon took on increased responsibilities against a loaded schedule and maintained efficiency.
Gansey thinks he was the only player in Division I college basketball to average 22 points and five assists while shooting over 50% from the field. He describes Philon as a “hooper”.
The intangibles mattered just as much as the quantifiable did.
“He’s got some toughness. I think he’s going to fit Philly. He plays with an edge. Plays with a swag. He’s not afraid. He’s a Mobile, Alabama kid, so he stayed home, so he’s loyal,” Gansey said.
“I just love his competitiveness. Especially in Philly, you want guys that want to compete and guys that aren’t afraid.”
That competitiveness is what drives Philon.
“He’s a monster worker from Alabama. He’s in the gym. He’s a guy that just likes to play. Maybe he’s not a workout guy, but he wants competition. In shooting drills, he wants to compete. He doesn’t want to just shoot to shoot,” Gansey said.
Gansey acknowledged that having Philon, another shot-creating guard, will help Nick Nurse manage the workloads of Tyrese Maxey and V.J. Edgecombe. He also made it clear that the Sixers can’t rely on a rookie point guard to be that trusted reliever by himself, a strong suggestion that they will target another ball-handler in free agency.
“You look at our roster, we need help at every position. One through five. Obviously we have the big four, but we need guys outside of them,” Gansey told reporters at the conclusion of the first round of the draft.
That’s where Philon comes into play.
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