🏃🏽💨 Mad dash | Sports Daily Newsletter

It’s only Thursday, but it’s already been a week.

Let’s start with last night’s NBA draft, which, amid all the hoopla leading up to it surrounding Rutgers star Ace Bailey, saw the Sixers select Baylor freshman VJ Edgecombe with the third pick.

Not to be outdone, the Flyers are next up ahead of tomorrow night’s NHL draft, with targets aplenty to consider.

Real Madrid is in Philly tonight to take on Austria’s Red Bull Salzburg in the final Club World Cup group game for both teams. It’s part of a whirlwind week of matches that continues Saturday with a knockout game between a pair of Brazilian giants.

And amid all of this madness, Jason Kelce served up cold ones in a Speedo yesterday at Ocean Drive down in Sea Isle. Yes, we have the pictures and video to prove it.

— Kerith Gabriel, @phillysport, [email protected].

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❓ How do you think VJ Edgecombe will fit in with the Sixers? Email us back for a chance to be featured in the newsletter.

Those are the words of VJ Edgecombe after being selected by the Sixers with the No. 3 pick on Wednesday night.

Edgecombe became the fourth guard drafted and kept by the Sixers in recent years, and the first No. 3 since the team selected Jahlil Okafor in 2015. Just a kid from the Bahamas, Edgecombe, 19, is expected to provide some much-needed help to Tyrese Maxey.

“I feel like I’ll be able to play off them,” he said Tuesday, referring to Maxey and star center Joel Embiid. “They’re great players. Embiid is the MVP of the league. … I just feel like I fit in well with them.”

There’s so much to know about the newest Sixers standout, but here’s five quick ones, so you can be in the know before all the watercooler talk at the office today.

Ranger Suárez has been close to automatic through his last nine starts, over which he has put up a 1.17 ERA. But even including his outlier first start when he gave up seven runs over 3⅔ innings, Suárez has held opponents to a hard-hit rate of 27.8% this season. That is the lowest percentage out of all qualified starters.

At the beginning of the season, with the Phillies carrying a surplus of starting pitchers, there was talk about Suárez returning to the bullpen. It’s a role in which he has previously pitched effectively, including in the 2022 postseason. But with the way Suárez has pitched, he looks more like a playoff starter.

On Wednesday, the Phillies dropped their second straight shutout loss against the Astros. They are now scoreless in the past 19 innings, the longest drought of the season.

Next: The Phillies wrap up their series in Houston at 2:10 p.m. today (NBCSP, NBC10). Cristopher Sánchez (6-2, 2.87 ERA) will start against Astros right-hander Hunter Brown (8-3, 1.88).

You can forgive Flyers fans for having sports PTSD when they read the last name “O’Brien” and see NHL draft in the same sentence. The Flyers’ decision to pick high school center Jay O’Brien with the 19th pick in the 2018 draft is a misstep that still haunts the franchise to this day.

But while Jake O’Brien’s name might evoke some bad memories, his highly skilled game might end the franchise’s long-standing search for a true No. 1 center. The Brantford Bulldogs center is widely considered one of the top playmakers in the class, and when you factor in his late birthday, he is viewed as one of the most significant upside players in the top 10.

But will O’Brien have his name called at No. 6? We ranked 13 players the Flyers could select on Friday night.

The NBA draft isn’t the only thing going down this week. In anticipation of Friday’s NHL draft, Inquirer writer Jackie Spiegel sat down with Chris Peters at FloHockey to talk all things draft and prospects for the Orange and Black to consider. Listen here.

Not to be outdone, Spiegel is answering your questions during her Ask Me Anything segment via r/flyers on Reddit today at 1 p.m. Have a question for Jackie? Leave it beforehand or set a timer to jump on and chat with her this afternoon.

June 26, 1996: A fresh-faced Allen Iverson was on his way to becoming a Philly favorite as the No. 1 pick of the Sixers in the 1996 NBA draft.

We asked you to tell us your reaction to last night’s Sixers’ pick.

I don’t think it matters who the Sixers draft. They are not going to be among the top NBA teams until they make changes in ownership and management. Other than head coach [Nick] Nurse, they are not ready to challenge the big guys. — Everett S.

Good pick! They sure didn’t want Ace. Kids got a poor agent and a poor attitude. Ben 2.0Best player on a poor team. Hope Utah has fun Ace. 76ers still need to divest themselves of Embiid and George. They could have 3 first round picks and they still won’t make the playoffs as long as those two are a 76er’ Just dead weight. — Ronald R.

We compiled today’s newsletter using reporting from Gina Mizell, Keith Pompey, Jackie Spiegel, Ariel Simpson, Sidney Snider, Scott Lauber, Lochlahn March, Jonathan Tannenwald, Owen Hewitt, Mark Perner, and Stephanie Farr.

By submitting your written, visual, and/or audio contributions, you agree to The Inquirer’s Terms of Use, including the grant of rights in Section 10.

That’s all I have for you today. I’ll doubling up here so I’ll be back in your inbox to get you all set for the weekend on Friday. — Kerith