In the long run, a highly rated prospect like Spanish point guard Ricky Rubio might not turn out to be any better than a lower-rated one like Ty Lawson, of North Carolina, or Eric Maynor, from Virginia Commonwealth.
The opportunity for the Sixers to pull a diamond out of a bag of emeralds should be there at 17.
If president/general manager Ed Stefanski and his scouting crew - led by vice president Tony DiLeo and director of player personnel Courtney Witte - have done their job well, the Sixers could emerge with a player who doesn't just fill a need, but has the potential to become something special.
Just remember, Kobe Bryant was picked 13th by the Charlotte Hornets, and then traded.
And some recent selections at 17 include Indiana Pacers All-Star Danny Granger in 2005 and rising Atlanta Hawks star Josh Smith in 2004.
Players like Tony Parker, Tayshaun Prince, David West, Jameer Nelson and Rajon Rondo were all drafted later than the Sixers pick tonight.
"I'm looking, along with our scouting staff, to find the best player with our 17th pick," Witte said earlier. "We have a plethora of perimeter players sitting there at the 17 spot."
That means it could be a crazy night in the Sixers' war room as they wait for the draft to shake out.
The only given in this draft is that Oklahoma forward and consensus national player of the year Blake Griffin is going to be the first pick - by the Los Angeles Clippers, who presumably intend to keep him.
After that, anything can happen as players move up and down the draft board.
Obviously, a player like Rubio or Davidson's lights-out shooter Stephen Curry isn't going slip to the Sixers at 17. But this draft is volatile enough that a player like UCLA freshman point guard Jrue Holiday or high-school phenom but Italian-league flop Brandon Jennings could fall out of the lottery and to the Sixers.
