The Philadelphia 76ers did have a first-round pick in 2021 NBA Draft, but that's not who most fans eyes will be focused on at the upcoming Summer League which begins for the Sixers on Monday in Las Vegas.

Last year’s first-round pick and No. 21 overall selection, Tyrese Maxey, will be participating and the team will be watching to see if he has taken that next step forward to having a bigger role this upcoming season.

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For one, if the Sixers move on from Ben Simmons, they are going to be counting on Maxey next season.

Philadelphia's only other ball handler off the bench, Shake Milton, is better suited in a reserve role, providing offense. While the Sixers could get a player back in return for Simmons who could fill his role, if Simmons stays, the development of Maxey could force the team to change his role.

Remember there was no Summer League last season due to the COVID-19 restrictions, so Maxey was thrown right into the NBA fire. This season, he will get a chance to lead a team and show the team what he can do it that role, which could help the Sixers make a decision on what to do with Simmons, move him, or change is role on the team.

Maxey gave the team a spark off the bench in a few of the postseason games, but didn't have consistent playing time to really settle into a role. With Simmons struggling in Game 6 against Atlanta, Maxey came off the bench to score 16 points with seven rebounds, one assist, one steal, one block in 29 minutes of action.

Another name to watch will be forward Paul Reed.

Reed showed flashes at the NBA level when given the opportunity, but really stood out in the NBA G League, where he was named the league's MVP, scoring 22.3 points, 11.9 rebounds, shooting 44% from 3-point range in 15 G-League games.

The team will undoubtedly look to see if Reed can continue to shot three's at a consistent clip, in hopes that he can provide a stretch-four off-the-bench, for the the upcoming season.

Lastly, Isaiah Joe, who appeared in 41 games for the Sixers, will be given a long look as another shooter off-the-bench.  Joe connected on 36% of his triples at the NBA level.  The 2020 second-round pick out of Arkansas, is not afraid to let it rip, but needs to find more consistency in his shot.

All three will be given a chance to shine in Vegas.

A couple of other names to zone in on will be this year's first-round selection, Jaden Springer and second-round picks Charles Bassey and Flip Petrušev.

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