No one knows if GM Sam Hinkie will pick a star or a bust when the Philadelphia 76ers make the third pick in Thursday night’s NBA draft, but that one pick made last year was a bust.

There had been some hope that European big man Dario Saric would cut short his stay in the Turkish pro league and sign with the Sixers, but that hope went out the window two days ago when Saric’s agent said his client would be spending another year in Europe. At first, the pick seemed to be a reach because no one can accurately predict how a European player will translate to the NBA game. In Europe, standstill jump shooters and rebounders are the stars, but in the NBA that kind of status is reserved for guys who can create their own shots.

Saric was always in the former category, never in the later one. His year in Europe was not overwhelming, averaging only 9.9 points per game. The native of Croatia will spend another season there, and if the next season is anything like the last, he can stay there.  In fact, the forward has two years remaining on his contract with the Anadolu Efes team and he is as likely to stay for all three years as he is to come over with the Sixers at the end of next one. The hope was that Saric would add some interior shooting to the rebounding of 7-foot centers Nerlens Noel and Joel Embiid, and now that plan seems to have unraveled. The fact that Saric does not appear to be in a hurry to play in the NBA has to be disconcerting.

The concern now is that Saric will never put on a Sixers uniform at all, and the latest development adds legitimacy to that. Wasting a No. 10 overall pick on European player who has cold feet should give Hinkie pause before ever doing the same thing again.

Mike Gibson is a writer for www.RantSports.com. Follow him on Twitter @papreps , “Like” him on Facebook or add him to your network on Google.