The Philadelphia 76ers came away with two players from the 2012 NBA draft. The Sixers picked Maurice “Moe” Harkless from St. John’s with the 15th overall selection. Harkless is one of the many young players taken in the draft. He left St. John’s after his freshman year.

The Sixers did a little maneuvering too, acquiring the draft rights to Arnett Moultrie, who was the 27th overall pick from the Miami Heat in exchange for the draft rights to Justin Hamilton (45th overall pick) and a protected future first round pick. Moultrie also left school early for the draft following his junior season at Mississippi State.

The Sixers brass was really high on Harkless. The 6-foot-8, 208-pound forward, made a huge impression on them during his playing days at St. John’s as well as the team’s workouts.

“We think he’s a great athlete and fits in with what we have,” said Rod Thorn, Sixers president. “We think he’s a player. He’s very young. His growth plates are still open. We think he’s going to get bigger. Eventually, we think he’s going to be able to play two positions. Our feeling was with his potential and athletic ability he was too good a player to pass up.”

Harkless is very young. He’s 19 years old. Harkless was named Big East Rookie of the Year averaging 15.5 points, 8.6 rebounds, 1.5 assists, 1.6 steals and 1.4 blocks while shooting 45.2 percent from the floor. He ranked sixth in the nation in scoring among freshman and second in rebounding.

Doug Collins, Sixers head coach, is also excited about him.

“We are very excited to add Maurice to our roster,” Collins said. “He was ranked very high on our board and we think he’s a terrific athlete with tremendous upside. We think he can play multiple positions. We’re adding him to a team that’s young and exciting and we think he has a very bright future.”

Though he has great credentials, Harkless basically plays the same position as Andre Iguodala and Thaddeus Young. It’s going to be tough for him to get into the rotation. This seems like a pick that was made on potential, which the Sixers feel Harkless has in terms of his skills. It’s hard to say how much of an impact he will have in his first season.

Moultrie, 21, would appear to be a little different story. He’s more of what the Sixers need. He’s a big body. Moultrie, a 6-foot-11, 249-pounder, was named first team All-Southeastern Conference averaging 16.4 points, 10.5 rebounds and 1.2 assists this past season while shooting 54.9 percent from the floor. He led the SEC in rebounding and ranked 10th in the country. He played extremely well at Mississippi State.

Depending on what the Sixers do in free agency and any moves they make in the offseason, Moultrie may be able to make some contributions.

The Sixers will have a chance to get a good look at Harkless and Moultrie when the team plays in the Orlando Pro Summer League. The league begins on July 9 at the Amway Center in Orlando.

Contact staff writer Donald Hunt at (215) 893-5719 or This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. .

It’s been an active summer for the Philadelphia 76ers. There’s no question about that. Some people think the Sixers should have made a bigger splash in terms of free agency and trades.

Nevertheless, they didn’t sit tight and they did make some moves. The Sixers recently obtained forward Dorell Wright from the Golden State Warriors and center Darryl Watkins from the New Orleans Hornets. The Sixers sent the rights to Edin Bavcic to the Hornets who are also trading Jarrett Jack to the Warriors.

Wright, a 6-foot-9, 205-pounder, played his first six seasons with Miami, winning a championship with the Heat in 2006. After that, he signed as a free agent with Golden State in 2010. Over the last two years, he started 143 of a possible 148 games for the Warriors, tallying 13.8 points a game.

He had his best year during the 2010–11 season. He started all 82 games, putting together career highs with 16.4 points, 5.4 rebounds, 3.0 assists and 1.51 steals a game. He led the NBA with three pointers made (194) that year. Last season, he ranked tied for 21st with 105 three point field goals made.

“We’re very happy to get a player like Dorell Wright,” said Rod Thorn, Sixers president of basketball operations. “We think his outside shooting and all-around game will be a great addition to our team and we look forward to having him in Philadelphia.”

The big thing that Wright gives the Sixers is another outside shooter. At times, the Sixers really struggled offensively. He also gives them some depth at the small forward position.

The Sixers should be a much better perimeter team despite losing Lou Williams, the team’s leading scorer, who signed with the Atlanta Hawks. The Sixers signed free agent Nick Young, a 6-foot-7 guard, who averaged 14.2 points a game last season. Young, former Southern Cal star, played four seasons for the Washington Wizards. He was traded to the Los Angeles Clippers in March where helped them get to the playoffs. Young gives the Sixers a taller player who can shoot from the wing.

Up front, the Sixers let power forward Elton Brand go using the amnesty provision. They also re-signed 7-1 center Spencer Hawes and 6-foot-9 power forward Lavoy Allen. Hawes averaged 9.6 points and 7.3 rebounds a game. Allen, former Temple star, averaged 4.1 points and 4.2 rebounds a game during the regular season. But Allen really stepped up in the playoffs. He averaged 6.3 points and 4.9 rebounds in the postseason. He also did a great job of guarding Boston Celtics center Kevin Garnett. Allen will battle for the starting power forward position this season.

The Sixers selected 6-foot-8 forward Maurice Harkless from St. John’s with the 15th pick in the first round of the NBA draft. They also acquired 6-foot-11 power forward Arnett Moultrie from Mississippi State in a draft night deal with the Miami Heat for the draft rights to Justin Hamilton and a protected future first round selection.

Contact staff writer Donald Hunt at (215) 893-5719 or This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. .