We are inching closer to the 2025 NBA Draft, and on June 25 the Sixers will make one of the most consequential decisions in recent franchise history when they make a call on what to do with the No. 3 overall pick.In the aftermath of the draft lottery last month, PhillyVoice spoke with six draft experts about some of the best prospects in this year's class, diving into their strengths and weaknesses and potential fits with the Sixers.Over the next several days, we will be diving deeper into each player's statistical profile, finding some numbers that paint a positive picture as far as their long-term outlook is concerned and others that show why their case to be the choice at No. 3 is not ironclad. This exercise is not meant to persuade or dissuade when it comes to any particular player, it's merely another way to illustrate each one's advantages and disadvantages at the next level.
Up next: VJ Edgecombe, believed by many to be one of the two strongest contenders to land in Philadelphia. Edgecombe is a phenomenal athlete with real skill, but there are some holes in his game which could dissuade the Sixers from drafting him this high:
The case for picking Edgecombe
• Athletic prowess: For any team, using a premium pick on Edgecombe starts with the belief that his athletic capabilities give him the ability to pull off certain things on the court that most players could never even conceive of doing. Last month, draft expert Maxwell Baumbach told us: "Edgecombe is obviously a ridiculous athlete. But what makes him so intriguing is the functionality of that athleticism paired with his mental processing of the game."
Not even an impressive 38.5-inch max vertical jump at the 2025 NBA Draft combine does it justice; in fact, Edgecombe's athletic testing results in Chicago were both very good and very disappointing given what he has put on film as an athlete. If you are optimistic about Edgecombe as a top-three pick in this class, you are betting that his athletic tools will give him a significant floor while raising his ceiling.
• Defensive production: Edgecombe has a chance to be an overwhelmingly positive force on the defensive end, though some added bulk down the line could do him some good if it enables him to defend guards and some wings. Edgecombe averaged 2.1 steals per game at Baylor, and the Bears were better as a defense just about across the board when he was on the floor. He posted a gargantuan 3.8 steal percentage and paired it with a 2.3 block percentage, which is stellar for a guard. It is hard to fathom Edgecombe not being a high-caliber NBA defender.
• Transition offense: Exactly how Edgecombe's offensive role takes shape at the NBA level remains to be seen, and to a large degree is dependent on his development as a shooter, ball-handler and passer. But Edgecombe was a dominant transition scorer at Baylor. These numbers in transition, courtesy of the gold mine that is Databallr.com, speak for themselves:
| Category | VJ Edgecombe 2024-25 |
| True shooting percentage | 69.7% |
| Percentage of shots taken at the rim | 57.0% |
| Field goal percentage at the rim | 76.6% |
This is a terrific starting point for Edgecombe offensively, even as he needs fine-tuning elsewhere (more on this in a moment). Tyrese Maxey and Edgecombe could make for a dynamic pairing in the open floor.
The case against picking Edgecombe
• Half-court scoring: To pick Edgecombe as high as where he is slated to be drafted this month, most teams will need to have confidence that he has at least a decent chance of blossoming into an excellent on-ball scorer. That is how players become stars, after all, and while Edgecombe has no shortage of natural gifts, whether or not he can consistently put the ball in the basket in the half court is up for debate.
Edgecombe's aforementioned lethal scoring in transition will be hugely valuable, but he has a lot of work to do playing against set defenses. His offensive efficiency at Baylor, broken down by offensive setting by Databallr, paints a jarring picture:
| Setting | True shooting percentage |
| Half-Court | 50.7% |
| Off Offensive Rebound | 58.5% |
| Transition | 69.7% |
Breaking it down even further, Edgecombe's efficiency at each location of the floor while shooting within half-court offense is noticeably underwhelming:
| Location | Field goal percentage |
| Rim | 50.0% |
| Mid-range | 37.8% |
| Three-point range | 32.7% |
On the 2025-26 Sixers, this weakness could probably be masked fairly easily. Edgecombe could learn in the shadows when it comes to on-ball scoring while using his transition offense and defensive playmaking to become a useful rotation piece. But when thinking about his chances of achieving long-term stardom, this is the primary concern for Edgecombe.
• Three-point shooting: Edgecombe is likely going to be a better shooter than his 34.0 three-point percentage at Baylor indicates; his strong volume – 8.6 three-point attempts per 100 possessions – is a point in his favor. But for someone whose on-ball scoring is already a real question, Edgecombe is not exactly a sniper from long range, and unless he experiences outlier development as either a shooter or ball-handler, his offensive ceiling could be capped well below what one hopes from when picking a perimeter player this high.
- MORE SIXERS
- Making the statistical cases for and against the Sixers drafting Tre Johnson
- 2025 NBA mock draft 1.0, with trades and my first prediction of what the Sixers will do at No. 3 overall
- Making the statistical cases for and against the Sixers drafting Ace Bailey
There is a compelling argument to be made that in a vacuum, Edgecombe is the third-best prospect in this draft. But it might be more difficult to make the case that he has the third-best chance of being a star several years from now. Picking at No. 3, how much do the Sixers care about floor versus ceiling when evaluating their options? The answer could determine Edgecombe's viability as a choice.
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