Could a Rutgers basketball star be playing his pro ball nearby in Philly?

The struggling Philadelphia 76ers are mocked to get Rutgers star Ace Bailey with the No. 2 pick in next summer’s NBA Draft, according to Tankathon.com, which tracks NBA records on a daily basis.

The way the Sixers are going, Philly fans might be heartened to root for some young talent (along with Jared McCain) next year and beyond.

The Sixers are 3-14 and own the second-worst record in the NBA behind the dreadful Washington Wizards after Wednesday’s 122-115 home loss to the Houston Rockets.

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The Sixers once again played without injured stars Joel Embiid, and Paul George — what else is new? — but Tyrese Maxey went for 39 points and 10 assists in the loss. They have dropped two straight and 7-of-8.

As for the 6-foot-10 Bailey, he is in the mix to be the No. 1 overall pick next summer along with Duke star Cooper Flagg, who is the projected No. 1 on most mocks and who the Sixers are also flirting with.

While the Sixers were losing again on Wednesday, Bailey scored 22 points in Rutgers’ 95-90 loss to No. 22 Alabama at the Players Era Festival in Las Vegas.

Dylan Harper, projected as the No. 3 pick to the New Orleans Pelicans, went off for 37 points and has scored 73 combined points in his first two games in Vegas.

“Give them (Rutgers) a lot of credit, they came out ready to play; I am not so sure we did,” Alabama coach Nate Oats said. “Dylan Harper and Ace Bailey are both super talented. Derrion Reid and Grant Nelson were our two best defenders for Ace (Bailey) for sure. We got into some foul trouble, Jarin had two (fouls) early and Derrion got into foul trouble. We didn’t very good answers for them and we had no answer at all for Dylan Harper. We’ll get our defense figured out.”

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Adam Zagoria is a freelance reporter who covers Seton Hall and NJ college basketball for NJ Advance Media. You may follow him on Twitter @AdamZagoria and check out his Website at ZAGSBLOG.com.