Paul Reed, Jaden Springer Praise 76ers Rookie Mike Foster

Coming out of Hillcrest Prep in Arizona, five-star prospect Mike Foster Jr. decided to take the professional route straight out of high school. Rather than attending a University, Foster took his talents to the NBA G League and joined the Ignite.

After spending a season with the Ignite, Foster hoped to get drafted in 2022. While he went undrafted, the rookie forward landed himself an opportunity to join the Philadelphia 76ers for training camp on an Exhibit-10 deal.

A successful camp and a promising preseason performance allowed Foster to earn himself a two-way contract with the Sixers. While he was bound to play with Philadelphia’s G League affiliate throughout the 2022-2023 season, Foster could also get called up to the main roster as well.

In a way, Foster’s beginning his career with the Sixers the same way the former G League MVP Paul Reed did. Two years ago, Reed landed a two-way deal with the 76ers after getting selected in the second round. After dominating the developmental level, Reed picked up a standard NBA contract.

Now, the 19-year-old Foster is working on going in a similar route.

“I just tell him, keep working,” Reed said last month after Foster inked his new deal. “You know, there’s gonna be a lot of ups and downs, but you gotta know that as long as you play consistent with the grind, you’re gonna come out on top.”

Foster made his Blue Coats debut last week. In his first set of action coming off the bench, the young big man produced 19 points in 24 minutes. The following night, Foster picked up his first start in Delaware and scored 26 points while collecting nine rebounds and four assists.

“I remember playing Mike last year, I think he did pretty good against us, too,” said Foster’s teammate, Jaden Springer, earlier this week. “You see it now, these last two games, especially the last two games, he’s been good. For sure [he looks improved]. Good to see.”

Ahead of Delaware’s Thursday night home opener, Paul Reed discussed Foster once more as he went up against the rookie in camp numerous times throughout the offseason. While Foster wasn’t around the Sixers for long, Reed saw enough to feel confident in saying the talented center is something like a jack of all trades at the position.

“He got that little turnaround middy that’s hard to guard,” said Reed. “That’s pretty special. I feel like he’s a good scorer. A three-level scorer. He’s still young, and he’s still understanding the game. I think he can kind of do it all.”

Once again, Foster did an excellent job in Delaware’s starting lineup. In 27 minutes, Foster collected 23 points on Thursday night. While the Blue Coats couldn’t get the win, Foster stood out alongside his Sixers teammate Springer. Foster will look to keep the ball rolling on Saturday when the Blue Coats will host the Capital City Go-Go once again at the Chase Fieldhouse.

Justin Grasso covers the Philadelphia 76ers for All76ers, a Sports Illustrated channel. You can follow him for live updates on Twitter: @JGrasso_.