By John Wetzel, Sports Talk Philly staff 
There's been a handful of names thrown around as options for the number three pick in this year's draft. Among these names, there's one potential game changer who's fallen down some boards which might make for some angry Sixers fans if he's the third name called on draft night.
Jayson Tatum is a 6'8" 205-pound small forward from Duke. The 19 year-old already has a very good build coming out of college and looks to be able to handle the wing or post duties in the NBA.
Tatum hasn't gotten very much draft hype because he was mainly used as an isolation scorer at Duke and didn't consistently show that his three point jumper is for real. Because of this, people might be scared of the Sixers being the next victim to reach on an isolation player who can't shoot or pass and underplays his draft slot compared to more dynamic prospects taken afterward. I've also heard the argument that Tatum and Ben Simmons wouldn't fit in the same offense because they would both need the ball in their hands.
This shouldn't be a cause for concern in regards to Tatum though. His game goes farther than just strong post moves down low. His mid-range jumper is very effectively used when given space or shooting off the fadeaway. He's dominant in the paint as he has outstanding body control and is able to absorb contact and finish when around the hoop. He's able to do this as a post player and also when driving in from the perimeter.
He would be able to fit into the Sixers long term plans because of the fluidity of modern NBA lineups. He would likely take some playing time away from Dario Saric and Robert Covington, but depth is needed for the Sixers at this point. Especially in Brett Brown's style of coaching as he likes to get creative with his lineups and give guys plenty of rest.
Offensively, Tatum would ideally fit in as an off-ball wing. This way the Sixers could still run the offense through Simmons, who would look to be able to create a lot of easy baskets with Joel Embiid and Tatum to help him out on pick-and-rolls or dump offs on post plays. He would also make a great compliment to Simmons in transition. Simmons likes to push the ball up the floor off of rebounds and having those two coming at you would be fun to watch.
Tatum would also likely get a lot of isolation plays as a lineup that featured him along with Embiid, Saric, and Simmons would likely get him a mismatch against an undersized player. He would also give you go-to scoring ability which you already have in Embiid, but given JoJo's injury history and minutes limit it would be nice to add more.
The big question will be his jumper. If he's able to space the floor for the Sixers, then they'd really be onto something here in what the call the process. It's not out of the question that he'll be able to do it either. We've all seen the video of him swishing shot after shot in the gym.
Potential Top-5 pick Jayson Tatum can't miss from 3 (via @DrewHanlen) pic.twitter.com/mWsx0i4Jgh
— Bleacher Report (@BleacherReport) May 23, 2017
Whether that form is viable in an NBA game is another discussion, but the fact that he simply can consistently make shots from the perimeter shows that his shot isn't broken.
Defensively, his frame and 6'11" wingspan would give you some versatility. Brett Brown made defense a point of emphasis during last year's stage of the rebuild and he'll be able to take a step further this year if the Sixers add Tatum.
So don't hate Tatum if he is the pick. He'll be a welcome addition to an already talented core of Sixers players.
