For the next month before the 2026 NBA Draft, we’ll take an in-depth look at different prospects here at Liberty Ballers and try to figure out which players would be the best fit for the Sixers at No. 22. Next up in this series is Iowa State’s Joshua Jefferson.
After spending two years at St. Mary’s, Jefferson transferred to Iowa State. With the Cyclones, his college career truly took off. By his senior season in 2025-26, he was one of the best players in the country. He was named a consensus Second
Team All-American and First Team All-Big 12. Unfortunately, Jefferson’s left ankle injury, suffered three minutes into the first round of the NCAA Tournament, cost Iowa State, which ranked as high as No. 2 in the country, a chance to make much noise during March Madness.
Profile
2025-26 Stats: 35 games, 30.9 minutes, 16.4 points, 7.4 rebounds, 4.8 assists, 1.6 steals, 0.8 blocks, 47.1% FG, 34.5% 3P, 70.0% FT
Team: Iowa State
Year: Senior
Position: PF/SF
Height & Weight: 6’7.75” | 246.2 lbs
Born: November 21, 2003 (22 years old)
Hometown: Las Vegas, Nevada
Strengths
The biggest strengths for Jefferson are his basketball IQ, versatility and physicality. All of those traits manifest in different ways.
Spending most of his time at the four, Jefferson operated like a point forward for the Cyclones. In the half-court, he was featured as a playmaking hub at the elbows. He was excellent in the pick-and-roll and in DHOs, creating opportunities for others or getting downhill and finishing with strength and nice touch around the rim. He also got to the free throw line plenty (6.1 attempts per game as a senior). He frequently started the break, grabbing the ball off the rim and pushing it for transition opportunities. For a player at his size, Jefferson is a smart and accurate passer, finding cutters and shooters for easy baskets.
Jefferson is a strong rebounder overall, especially on the offensive glass, where he averaged nearly two a game. His off-ball defense was great for the Cyclones as he averaged 1.9 steals a game over the last two seasons and generally wreaked havoc. While he isn’t the greatest rim protector, he does well to wall drivers off and challenge without fouling. Jefferson’s best assets on the defensive end are his NBA-ready frame and IQ. The frame and physicality are likely genetic — his father, Ben, was an offensive lineman in the NFL, as was his oldest brother. His middle brother played defensive line at the D-1 level.
Jefferson is a Swiss Army Knife-type player. He can do a little bit of everything, even progressing as a three-point shooter in his four college seasons. While he might not have star potential, he has the traits of an excellent connective piece at the next level.
Weaknesses
The reasons Jefferson is a fringe first-rounder are his age, inconsistency with his shot and lack of high-end athleticism.
Jefferson will be 23 in November, making him an older rookie. While the experience clearly helped him improve his game, he didn’t truly dominate until his senior season. The question for NBA evaluators will be whether Jefferson is on a track to continue improving or has already plateaued.
While shooting 34.5% on 3.1 attempts per game is solid for a player with Jefferson’s varied skillset, it’s fair to wonder if he can carry that over to the NBA level. He shot below 30% from beyond the arc in his previous three seasons combined. The improvement on higher volume is encouraging and he’s a solid free throw shooter (72.2% for his career) with good touch inside the arc, but shooting could be a swing skill — as it is for so many forwards.
The athletic testing portion of the combine did Jefferson no favors. He tested poorly in just about every athletic metric. Not historically bad like John Broome, but not great. The film shows a player who looks functionally athletic against some high-level competition, but he’s not the fleetest of foot and it’s hard to know until you see him against NBA athletes.
Positional Fit
The theoretical best version of Jefferson is a dream fit for the Sixers.
You could slot him in at the four right between Joel Embiid and Paul George. He could be an excellent connector for the starting group and occasionally take on a bigger offensive role when the stars are inevitably out. Rebounding and passing are two of the Sixers’ biggest needs and Jefferson checks both boxes. His ability to create turnovers and get loose balls would endear him quickly to Nick Nurse. Again though, the shooting will need to continue to improve.
He also fits both timelines. He could potentially be a rotation player now, while making himself into a key cog next to Tyrese Maxey and VJ Edgecombe for the future. It’s not hard to envision Jefferson pulling the ball off the rim and finding Edgecombe for easy transition lobs. Again, Jefferson likely doesn’t have star upside, but finding good, smart, versatile, rotational-level players is also important.
Draft Projection
SB Nation mock draft: No. 24, New York Knicks
With so many players deciding to go back to school and cash in on NIL money, a deep draft has thinned out quite a bit. Many of the more popular names we’ve seen linked to the Sixers could come off the board before we even reach the 20s. Depending on how it shakes out, selecting Jefferson at 22 might not be a reach.
Watching him go to the Knicks might suck.
