One season ends and another is immediately upon us, and that would be draft season. We're excited. That's twenty four. I think there's going to be a lot of players of interest and then having a lot of assets as good and kind of lets you control what you want to do when some some goals and have some means to go and go and achieve them. That's Vince Rosman, who heads up the seventy six or scouting department. We'll hear from him and Mariol Shaya prospect who was in
town for pre draft workout earlier this week. Game very versus I think, I mean Tea needs shooting, an ability of the parents. I think I spring that time to start diving into our draft season series. On this episode of the broadcast, back we are on the podcast How You Doing. I'm Brian Seltzer. Thanks so much for checking out this edition of the pod. We've got our first
draft season episode of the spring coming up. But first reminders to please do subscribe Apple podcasts, Google podcast, tune in SoundCloud four great places to get our podcast feeds. All you got to do is type in Sixers podcast Network that will take you to where you need to be so you can never miss an episode. We've also got plenty of draft coverage for you to check out on our website sixers dot com, also on all of our social channels, as well profiles of individual players and
recaps the first two workouts of the spring. If I'm being totally honest and upfront, last Tuesday, about forty eight hours after a Game seven of the Eastern Conference Semifinals came to an end, I honestly would have much rather been getting ready for the opener of the Conference finals in Milwaukee. Who wouldn't. That's just the type of year that you live to be a part of, and as a team you play for it. Of course, was four
bounces not to be. But instead, on the flip side, I, along with probably many of you, we're tuned into ESPN an annual right of Spring passage focusing on this pick number fourteen will be made by the Boston Celtics. All right, this was originally Sacramentos pick, but it goes to Boston. If the pick had been number one overall would have
been in Philadelphia. But Celtics, you've got it. Ah. Yes, the NBA Draft lottery in Chicago, for better or worse, might be the last one for a while that we pay close attention to, at least as far as the lottery is concerned. Seventy Sixers had a shot, a one percent shot of getting the Sacramento King's pick that would have conveyed to number one, but that wasn't the case. So the Boston Celtics, as you heard Rachel Nichols say,
assume the rights to that pick at number fourteen. But all at all, the Sixers they are in a I think a really great spot to influence this year's draft. We're going to talk about that with Vince Rosman in a bit. The Sixers tied for the most picks in the league with five at number twenty four, thirty three, thirty four, forty two, and fifty four. And with all those picks in hand, it's been an important few days recently, an important few weeks and last month or so for
members of the seventy Sixers. They were at the Combine in Chicago last week, and that was followed by the team's second pre draft workout this spring on Monday at the training complex in Camden. One of the participants who interested me and who was also in Chicago for not just the Combine but the NBA G League Elite camp Iowa State product Mariol Shayok Mario was an All American
Honorable mention last year. He started his career for three seasons at UVA, then he transferred to Ames in two thousand seventeen, had a breakout two eighteen nineteen campaign, and we caught up with Shayok and asked him not just about the state of his game, but his impressions of these seventy sixers. It's history and great players got that's come through here and then obviously the current players that's kind of brought the franchise back to where supposed to be.
And when you're on a court you see you know, Barkley Iverson, Irving Chamberlain, I mean, what is that like? Can you help you know, you mentioned the history, can you got to help it get caught up in that history thing? Yeah, it's crazy you've seeing that Iverson, Jerry Yess one of my favorite players growing up, um and obviously being from Canada, you remember Everyson killing us at OH one, Him and Vince Carter and obviously they had
a good series uh this past playoff playoffs. So I mean, this history is just amazing to see as a young player, you know you're coming up. You mentioned the seventy six ers having a regeneration or regrowth. What stands out about the style of play the team has. I mean it's great. I mean the starting five obviously stands out the most just because the talent has an ability to play together. I think they really kind of faded out in the playoffs and Jimmy Butler and Joel and B lead in
a way. You obviously got Reddick ability to space the floor, and then obviously Ben Simmons does a little bit of everything. So um, I mean the style of player. Then they they kind of just make it work within their their strength, so they could play fast, they could slow it out a game and having Joel and B post or space out of the floor. So it's just a very very
style of play. So when you walk me through really from start to finish, and there's just your second workout, but from start to finish, like when you land here to when you get on the court to when you're wrapping up, what is this whole experience with the seventy six er has been like what if this has been some of the things that had you do It's been great I mean he came in kind of late from the common last night and it's got some food and went to sleep. And then this morning, I mean, they
really took care of us. They got us some breakfast, the facility out there, which was crazy to see. So the whole facility here is amazing. And then it really took care of us. And then all all the coaches coaches here are really really helpful. They got us, they pushed us through and you got some good working. We'll talk about your career arc through college and that win. But just coming into this pre draft season Portsmouth Invitational, you shot the ball really well, did so the same
at the combine. How are you feeling about the general state of your game right now? Feeling good. I'm still trying to get comfortable with these new settings and new players and playing against playing with and against new guys is it's definitely a challenge. It's especially coming from a college the college season where you're familiar with all the players you're playing with. Um, so it's new. But I
think I'm doing well. I think I'm just trying to play to my strengths, stay confident and shoot the ball and do what I do in defense. I mean it's a common person, you know. I think from the outside, like, you've got all these executives watching you, coaches, general managers. How do you tune that out? Are you able to? Does it help you when you think of that sort of thing, How do you maintain focus? And it's a very important moment that you're working towards. That's the thing
I just trying to not to think. I think I played better when I'm free and playing free. And I mean, obviously the executives and the coaches all can be intimidating if you let it, but honestly, it's what you want. It's when you're eventually gonna have to play in front of them, play a fund of many executives hopefully throughout my career, and I just got to stay confident no matter what, I just play my game and let the
rest handle it. So, what were some of the things that they emphasized on the court during your drills and scrimmages and just go harden every rat the pace and it really just just really kept me moving. It was a really fast paced workout and so it really wasn't too time to dwell on misshots or anything, and to stay compent, spent the first three years of your college
career at UVA, then you transferred to Iowa State. At UVA in those three years or were some of the biggest things you took away from your experience as far as your development as a player in a person. Oh Man, the UVA I mean, it was an amazing experience for me. Relationships I built there, but guys like Justin who was here last year, and Malcolm and all those guys helped me become the player I am today and a person today, just seeing how they worked and how they carry themselves.
And then obviously with the coaching staff there, they're checking in on and really just they made me really a better person, and really I'll carry myself as a credit to them. I'd have to think defensively, that had to wise thy basketball wise. Obviously improved defensively, and then um, the ability to create with limited jibble to something I definitely got better at coming out of highchool and going to UVA. Just within their offense. You have the time
at UVA and then people see breakout numbers. This past year. There was, of course the transfer season where you had to sit out, take me inside what was going on? Last year before this season, when you probably had time to work on your game developed, how did you prepare yourself to step up and step in the way you did this year? I mean I would say, I mean I had a year off I really to just take my time and really just dissect my game and get
better in all aspects of my game. And then once this year came out, I was really wanted to trust my work and just play free. And Coach prom being an amazing coach he was, he put me in great spots to really excel. Where do you think your game is at right now as far as best fit for an NBA team? Um? I think on games very versatile. I think, I mean every NBA team needs shooting and an ability to defend. So I think I just bring that.
I think it could score and really make shots, especially when open, and then my length of the defend on the one in three. So I think any NBA team could use that. What's the lasting impression that you want to leave an NBA organization with when you walk out the doors after they of a pre draft workout? Um, and that on bought in and to get in better
and really improve my game. Um, than it's something I really take pride in, and then that I'm gonna do make winning plays on and off the court, and keeps giving all good stuff from Mariel Shayak, who also went to Blair Academy in New Jersey before the start of
his collegiate career at Virginia. But this past season he was terrific, averaged over eighteen and a half points per game, just about five rebounds, two assists, shot really well from three at over thirty eight percent hits seventy one three pointers, and he's been shooting the ball really well in recent weeks at the Portsmouth Invitational at the three games there, and also in Chicago at the G League Elite Camp
and during the combined scrimmages. So appreciate Mariel Shayak for taking a few minutes out of his visit with the seventy sixers to talk. We're gonna talk with Vince Rosman, Senior director of scouting for the seventy sixers, in just a few seconds. But it is almost upon us. The
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open at seventy six Erscamps dot com. At seventy six Ers Camps presented by Rothman Orthopedics and powered by e SF, it is an insanely intense time of year for personnel people throughout the NBA. It is no different for Vince Rosman. He's been with the seventy six Ers for the better part of a decade and a half. He is currently the club's senior director of Scouting and it is great to have him back on the podcast at this all important time of year. Vince, I'm not going to divulge
any details or secrets about your recent itinerary. All I will say is that as of the morning of recording this podcast, you are just a few hours and removed being back in the Delaware Valley from being a few time zones away, and within a few more hours you'll be off to another time zone. So why don't we start with that? Just how NonStop is the pace this time here? I gotta imagine it's pretty crazy. Yeah, Actually, since the start or the end of the college season,
it gets pretty nuts. So you go into multiple different like all star ish type events, whether it be from high school kids or college seniors. That's pretty much April. And then from April you go into the combine, and combine goes into both the in market workouts and the agent workouts, which are all over the place. So we're in that. We're in that mix right now, and it's
it's a lot of travel. It's not my wist favorite time of year, but there are there has to be perks for her at the end of the day, right, some frequent flyer miles that sort of thing. Yeah, she takes advantage a new meaning to double a advantage. So how much new things are uncovered this time of year,
about four weeks away from the draft itself. I gotta imagine there's certain guys who at the beginning of college season are on the radar of every team, and then as the season unfolds, there are more prospects that come along. But is it the case where some prospects pop at these showcases or group workouts or whether you bring in guys to the training complex here. I think the biggest thing is people don't necessarily understand how limited our access
is to the players. So a lot of times this is our first chance to sit across the table and actually talk to them. Or similarly, it's our time to go to campus and really talk to coaches and get their feedback. Otherwise you're you're just kind of watching, and this level of detail you don't really get to until till this time of year, which is valuable. Like you, you want to know who they are as people and what their interactions have been like with you know, coaches
and support staff and all that throughout their career. I'm not sure if it's fair to describe the interview process at the combine similar to something like speed dating, but it is very rapid. A lot of guys come in.
But still I do have to think that there's even something that might emerge in those interactions, because if you think, even in any context or any walk of life, like I'm just thinking when you apply to college, you're thinking, Wow, I really hope I get an interview with my application rather than just someone reading my application, because there's just something that you hope you can either convey or someone else finds out about you through interpersonal dynamics. Right, that
has to be similar to this. Yeah, it actually is very very speed dating like. But but that said, um, if you're interviewing somebody for any job, you want to be able to actually sit in front of them and talk to them and get a feel for who they are as people, and you know what their experiences have been like and what led them to this point. It. Yeah, like you just would want to know them as much
as possible. With you, guys, getting into the thick of it right now, why don't you give us a timeline for the average person out there who might be listening. When this really starts for you guys, when you start digging into preparing for the next year's draft. It kind of never stops, honestly. So from from this draft, well we'll stop start scouting you know, international events of under eighteen and under nineteen and under twenty year old kids
across the world. So that's July and August, and in August there's Nike camps and other you know, shoe company events that has high school and college kids for the next year. So so you you dive right back in, and you know that helps prepare you for the next college year, and from college you get right back to this point in the year. It's it's it's kind of a NonStop process. Literally, it is a planet full of prospects that you guys have to scour to try and
find talent. How do you funnel it down? How does it go from the inverted pyramid type of look, I guess where it must be so broad to begin with, and then you try to narrow and whittle things down to zero and on potential targets. It's actually, I mean, thank goodness, it's probably a lot easier now than it was in the past. Now we have access to more data, way more video, so we're not so reliant on the
happenstance of seeing a guy. There's a bunch of things and indicators that point us in the right direction before we get to that point. But yeah, it's it's it's not easy. Seventy six ers have five picks in the draft as we speak at this point in time. That's tied for the most in the league. Number twenty four, then thirty three, thirty forty two, fifty four. How do you guys feel about that stash of picks? We're excited, um at twenty four, I think there's gonna be a
lot of players of interest. UM. And then ideally, you know, somewhere in the thirties are kind of looking at the same pool of player and then when you when you look further down the draft, hopefully you know there are some options whether we roster them or not, or stash them or get the trade out for future picks. UM.
Having having a lot of assets as good. It gives you a lot of optionality and kind of lets you control, um, what you want to do when sent some goals and have some means to go and go and achieve them. I got to ask you about the King's pick because there was a chance not a great chance, but there was a chance, a one percent chance that you guys could have ended up with the number one overall pick in the draft. How did you guys view that internally?
How was that possibility as remote as it might have been reconciled as you guys were watching the lottery unfold, I didn't actually think about it too much. I think were we fortunate enough to win it, I would have taken care of itself. Clearly, there was nothing we could have done to help help those odds at this point
would have been a good day. With your tenure here with the team, you've been here for about a decade and a half, how would you describe the organizations in the front office's philosophy when it comes to the draft, things you look for, type of guys you may try
to identify. Um. I think at this point it's a lot of the same stuff Brett consistently talks about in you know, postgame and post practice interviews, which is we're focused on guys especially you know now that we have been and Joe well and hopefully Jimmy and Tobias are back, that that can play off of those guys. And what that is is guys that can defend, Guys that can make open shots, Guys that know who they are and know what role they fill and and can excel in
that role. And quite frankly, those are the types of guys you hope they get later in the draft. Anyway, the stars kind of washed themselves out a little bit earlier. There does have to be a simplification process, I would think to a certain degree when at this stage, now, what do we say about three years into the team putting itself in position to contend where you have pieces there, and then I would think you can just zero in more on the type of needs that need to be filled.
Is that not always the case a little bit. It's there's a balance. You also don't want to to pass up, you know, uber talents that just happen to fall. You want to keep your options open. But there's definitely, you know, I don't know if it's specific to us, but league wide, unique guys that can defend on the perimeter and switch and hold their own in space, and then everybody needs shooters. So it's it's not really a secret at this point.
I know, you guys in the scouting department have a handful of people who are in here for their first or second seasons and other guys who have been here for generations from your experience for yourself, do you ever stop learning about what it takes to be a good talent evaluator? No, I mean, hopefully we are good talent
talent evaluators. I think in the summer we do a good job of sitting down and kind of having postmortems over of the past year and what we could have done better and how you can you know, what are we missing, how are we thinking about players? And what can we do to better evaluate talent, better, collect intel, get more accurate intel, um better format processes, so we're
ready earlier in the year. UM there. Yeah, there's there's always a learning process, and I think the different perspectives we have on staff is only helpful um to come up with better solutions to those questions. What makes for a good projection when it comes to prospects, How do you tell if a guy is NBA ready? I'm sure varies from player to player, but what are some of the things that that jump out and let you know whether a guy has a shot or he might be
ready to make that leap to this level. I wish there was that UM, like one simple answer to that question. UM, oftentimes we don't. I mean, based on the amount of players that league as a whole gets wrong. I don't know that we can necessarily know. UM, but I think character drives a lot of that, and the guys will to win and will get will to get better and improve. UM. You know, their self awareness of where they are on their improvement scale is is very important so that they
know where they have to go. UM. But yeah, I don't that's a really hard question to answer. I guess if people knew, then it would be a much more simple and direct task and challenge. You mentioned earlier about how the team literally has the globe covered to a certain degree when it comes to mining for talent. How do you guys divide up your resources between amateur scouting,
pro scouting, UM, international scouting. UM. Yeah, we definitely have guys that are specialized in each of those roles UM, mostly dictated by their relationships and in each one each of those universes. UM. That way, you know, you want to get information before other teams. You want to get
information more accurate than other teams. UM. So to do that, you need to to have people that have really, really, really deep relationships and with coaches and people just that that are around the players and in the know and can get information that other people can't. I'm sure even at the settings like the Portsmouth Invitational or the Combine, you also have personnel people and executives from teams interacting
with one another and you build relationships over years. There's a lot of guys, I've got to think, travel familiar paths and similar circuits and see each other on a regular basis. How do you get to a point where you can tell whether you know some of the stuff that's been talked about, if it's sincere talking of shop or like, is there misdirection do you have to look out for that sort of thing, or how does that dynamic? Yeah, you tend not to believe anything at this point in
the year. It's probably the best way to approach all of those conversations. Yeah, we definitely sit next to each other way too often, But at the end of the day, it also seems like everyone's at least on the surface friendly and gets along and there's this understanding of what you're all trying to do. Oh, yeah, no question. I mean, you know, that's a league full of good people and we enjoy each other's company, but we also are all
playing the same game and want to win it. You know, I've really really good friends that I will lie to. I think they I think they know that. It is a delicate dance. So tell me a little bit about the Portsmouth Invitational. That's one of the first big showcase events um of the pre draft season once guys get out of school for seniors. How good of a gauge can that event be? What does that event tell you? Uh? Yeah, Portsmouth's great, It's been around forever. It's it's a showcase
for seniors. So oftentimes, what why it's helpful is you get to see guys in a different contexts. Um, maybe they've been put in a box and whatever school they were at, and they can you know, show you that they've expanded their games over the years and have have more more to them than you have thought. It's also, like we said earlier, one of the first opportunities to grab a guy and have you know, launch or coffee with them and actually talk to them for for some
good amount of time. But then it's just it's Portsmith. It's great, Like it's it's just a neat, neat setting. It seems more low key than the combine, Oh very much. Yeah, the combined. To me, and just as someone who's certainly outside the NBA personnel circle, I go there and I literally feel like I could just stand in a corner and people watch between college coaches who roll in for a quick appearance, to all the executives who are there. You know, this year I saw a picture of Elton
speaking with Jerry West. It's like your head can almost be on a swivel, and for me at least, you're just amazed by some of the interactions between these power brokers that are taking place. It's crazy, it's humbling. It's it's humbling room to be in with with I don't know, people that have been in the league forever and have done like unbelievable things, either as players or as executives or coaches. Um, it's it's yeah, it's the who's who
of the NBA at this point. Do the scrimmages inform your opinions or open your eyes to things to the extent you can actually watch them, right, I mean that's the other part of it. Yeah, Um, well, you could always go back on video too. Yeah, it's similar to Portsmouth.
You know, you identify some guys that maybe played, um, you know, their career in a defensive zone, so you get to see how they move their feet latter really on the perimeter and and hold up one on one, or you see maybe a guy that's played off the ball get get more opportunities to make plays for teammates or himself. Um. So it's those like specific things you kind of look for more more than just kind of generically watching and taking notes like you would during the year.
Has the incorporation of the GE League Elite showcases that affected the way you're able to leave Chicago as far as the information you gather, Um, yeah, it's it's a it was a positive. It's just more access, more more more games to watch, more people to meet, more conversations I have with players. Um, the more the better for us.
So this time of year, we are zeroing in on June twentieth, How fluid are things as far as views on players, decisions that might be made, moves that I would think you might to a certain extent try to line up to have ready in the can once draft
night rolls around. Yeah, that the latter part of that's definitely you know, more of a Elton's wheelhouse from a from a strictly scouting perspective, it's it's just tightening up loose loose bows, I guess, or whatever that's saying is at this point because we've had I don't know, endless conversations and full staff meetings again and again and again. Um So, I don't think there's you know, something new from a talent or skill evaluation standpoint that that will
shock us. If if there is, we probably didn't do a good job throughout the year. Um So. Now it's just a matter of formulating all of that and coming to an understanding of the players and where everybody fits relative to everybody else, and be able to present that to you know, Ellen and Alex Rucker and those guys, and and then you know, have their opinions overlaid over over what the scouting group has come up with throughout
the year. Now, you talked about this the other day at one of the pre draft workouts, and Elton Brand mentioned this in his end of season press conference too, that this is now looking back to this time last year, really about a full year that some of the members of the front office have had working together, and while it wasn't something where you guys weren't familiar with each other this time last year, it's just another year of
working together, knowing each other, being familiar with that type of setting. How much of a difference have you found that to make? Yeah, I mean getting getting the cadence of the workflow and how I think the biggest thing is understanding how the people above me want to consume information and how they learn best, and being able to take what the scouts provide and you know, manipulate in a way that is helpful or most helpful for the
management team. It's kind of I think that's the primary goal of my role, is to be able to present stuff to those guys in ways that they find most hopeful. All right, well, Vince, if you are able to catch a few cat naps and continue to rack up those points for missus, Senior director of Scouting for the Philadelphia seventy six, get to sleep wherever you can, no question. Thanks Mat Awesome, thanks by great to catch up with Vince Rosmin. Great to speak with Mariol Shayak as well.
Thank you for listening. New draft season podcasts coming your way once a week from now until the draft itself on June twentieth, so be on the lookout and check those feats. Have a great holiday weekend, Talk to you next time. See it.