LAS VEGAS – When the Sixers used the No. 35 overall pick in last month's 2025 NBA Draft on Auburn big Johni Broome, most felt that the selection had come out of nowhere. But not Broome.
Broome told the media in his introductory press conference that years ago, when he tested the waters at the NBA Draft Combine but elected to return to Auburn, he met with the Sixers. It was clear that the team had interest in him – if he went back to school and worked on a few things.
Years later, Broome met with the Sixers for another combine interview. This time, he was one of the most accomplished collegiate basketball players in recent history. Broome and the team were on the same page: his necessary steps of growth had been taken. A month and change later, Broome was sitting at a podium in the team's practice facility, donning a Sixers cap as the newest member of the organization.
On the Summer Sixers' first full day in Las Vegas last week, PhillyVoice sat down with Broome to discuss that initial meeting and his growth since, plus the next steps ahead in his development. Later on, Broome's coach at that combine – now set to be a key figure in Broome's NBA developmental process – weighed in on what has since changed.
Broome is never going to be a player who impresses with raw athletic ability; his testing results are noticeably poor. He is not a player whose efforts in 1-on-0 workouts will be tantalizing. But whenever Broome finds himself playing an actual basketball game, he finds ways to produce and win.
In 2023, during the same week he met with the Sixers for the first time, Broome became a force in the combine's scrimmages. His coach during those games: Rico Hines, the longtime coach now entering his third year as an assistant on Sixers head coach Nick Nurse's staff.
Hines is going to spend a whole lot of time working with Broome in the near future. What does he remember about coaching Broome in 2023?
"After going through all of the stuff from the practice days and the combine games, when we got to playing the games, just how effective he was," Hines told PhillyVoice on Tuesday. "We played two games and he had two really good games for us, man."
Hines knows that Broome plays at his own (hint: slower) speed. He understands that Broome's skill set is a bit of a throwback. But the results are undeniable.
"Sometimes it looked a little bit awkward or different, but he was very effective," Hines said. "That's what I remember the most. If you look at the stat sheet, he'll end up with 18 and 10, 19 and 10, and he was just really efficient and effective, getting a lot of stuff done."
That is why, when Hines found out about the front office's choice – a decision he said he had no role in whatsoever – he rejoiced.
"I was very happy," Hines said. "Extremely happy because I know how effective he can be."
Broome remains a flawed prospect. But he is unquestionably a better player than he was two years ago, even with the warts that do exist. When he met with the team for the second time in May, Broome could hold his head high because he had done the work.
"It was a good conversation with them," Broome told PhillyVoice on Thursday. "...They kind of expressed it to me and that's why they liked me. They expressed that I did do those things and I had made a jump from the previous two years."
What did they want him to improve in the first place?
"They just wanted to see me grow as a player and improve," Broome said. "Athleticism, free throws, expanding my three-point shot and continuing to bother shots and make plays on defense."
That comment might raise eyebrows, as Broome's shooting percentages at Auburn did not materially improve from beyond the arc or the free throw line. But he experienced a noticeable uptick in volume in both departments. Teams oftentimes end up weighing shooting volume much more than shooting accuracy when projecting how a player's shot will translate to the next level.
Broome has shot the ball very well in a very small sample in Summer League, which at least gives him something on which to build.
"I have a lot of room to improve my jump shot," Broome said. "But I think by me putting in the time and putting up the shots, that it will improve."
Broome is a well-rounded player, though. And as much as a consistent three-point shot would elevate his ceiling, he has enough skills that no single one of them will ever be the glue holding it all together for him. He is multi-faceted.
"He's always had a good feel," Hines said. "He knew how to play out of double teams. He had a good IQ. He can pass. He's done a good job of trimming his body down, and he’s done a good job of working on his three-point shot."
More than any skill development over the last two years, improved physical condition is what Hines kept coming back to when asked about Broome's transformation from 2023 to 2025. While Broome might still be a below-average NBA athlete, he has a much better chance of being able to keep up with the speed of the game at the professional level now than he did then.
“I think the biggest part is his body. He's done a great job of trimming himself down and getting his body down," Hines said. "I kept up with him throughout the last couple years. I didn't get a chance to see a lot of his games, but if Auburn was on I would watch. I remember watching him in the Maui Classic this season, and I was very happy for him, man. Just his size and what he's done with his body to trim his body down."
Broome has an unconventional style, so any trust he can generate from his new coaching staff will be valuable. In addition to the support of Hines, Broome said his conversations with Nurse have been full of encouragement.
"He just tells me to play freely, play my game," Broome said. "He wants me to continue to shoot from the perimeter, keep showcasing my three-point shot. Ultimately he wants me to play fast and play my game."
The Sixers have generally favored young prospects with outlier athletic tools later on in drafts. Broome fits neither of those descriptors. But he has a skill set and a mental makeup that the entire organization believes in. He has an incredibly valuable ally in Hines, whose work has been imperative for the growth of many key Sixers youngsters, from Tyrese Maxey to Jared McCain.
But before Hines had started coaching either of those players, he was in a gym in Chicago in 2023, taken aback by a big from Auburn with an unusual style.
"I know he can get a lot of stuff done. He was All-American in college, so that means he was a really good player on a really good team," Hines said. "Just excited to work with him. I think that he's proved people wrong all the way through and I'm just excited. I'm really excited for him to work with him, to continue to coach him and teach him and develop him. I think he’ll have a bright future, I really do.”
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