The Sixers start the Mike Gansey era with the 22nd pick. Here’s where we stand hours before draft night.

NEW YORK — Dailyn Swain posted a photo of the Philly skyline on his Instagram story last week.

The Texas wing was in town for a predraft workout with the Sixers and “the city was alive,” Swain recalled, because his visit coincided with Friday’s World Cup match between Brazil and Haiti at Lincoln Financial Field.

Swain has since joined several fellow first-round prospects at a luxury New York City hotel for the final stretch before being selected Tuesday night at Barclays Center. He is still among the possibilities to be chosen by the Sixers, who enter Tuesday with the 22nd overall pick in a loaded draft and new president of basketball operations Mike Gansey at the helm.

“I’m very emotional,” Swain said. “I know once I hear my name, it’s going to be a surreal feeling … I’m trying to enjoy the moment.”

» READ MORE: What can the Sixers expect with the No. 22 draft pick? Past drafts illustrate the unpredictability.

This draft class is packed with top-level talent — AJ Dybantsa, Darryn Peterson, and Cam Boozer are all worthy of the No. 1 pick, experts say — as well as depth throughout the first round. That means interesting options should be available, at all position groups, if the Sixers remain at 22.

It is the first roster-building move for Gansey, whom the Sixers hired earlier this month to oversee daily front-office operations for a team that finished seventh in the Eastern Conference standings, stormed back to upset the Boston Celtics in the playoffs’ first round, then were swept by the eventual NBA champion New York Knicks.

Though Gansey joined the Sixers’ draft preparation late, he ran that process in his previous job as general manager for a Cleveland Cavaliers franchise that was scouting for this year’s 29th pick. When asked during his introductory news conference about his overall draft philosophy, Gansey said the Sixers will make their selection based on a combination of best player available and fit.

The Sixers held in-person workouts in Philly last Tuesday and Friday. Versatile Santa Clara forward Allen Graves and Duke sharpshooter Isaiah Evans confirmed Monday that they were among the participants, while a source confirmed to The Inquirer that Houston big man Chris Cenac Jr., also was in attendance. Physical forwards Koa Peat of Arizona and Zuby Ejiofor of St. John’s also were reportedly part of those workouts. Iowa guard Bennett Stirtz said Monday that he has had two interviews with the Sixers.

So Monday became a quest to mine the tiniest tidbits from those prospects in media scrums. Evans said his workout with the Sixers was with Swain, and that current Sixers VJ Edgecombe and Justin Edwards also were in the gym. Graves praised the Sixers’ “amazing” facilities in Camden. Stirtz said that, while watching the playoffs, he recognized how he could “release pressure” off standout guards Tyrese Maxey and Edgecombe with his outside shooting.

“I create space out there on the floor,” said Stirtz, who is projected to go a bit higher than 22nd. “Every team needs another ballhandler and shooter.”

» READ MORE: Mike Gansey should consider drafting Zuby Ejiofor at No. 22, or trading up for Morez Johnson, or …

Gansey kept some continuity within the Sixers’ front office — including the recently promoted Jameer Nelson — that has executed successful recent drafts. It picked Maxey 21st in 2020, and Jared McCain 16th and Adem Bona in the second round in 2024. Even Paul Reed, Isaiah Joe, and Julian Champagne, who have gone on to succeed with other playoff teams, were either selected in the second round or signed as an undrafted free agent. In 2023, the Sixers traded the 23rd overall pick to the Memphis Grizzlies for guard DeAnthony Melton, a key role player for two seasons when healthy.

“I’m excited to learn from them,” Gansey said of the remaining front office, “and, obviously, put my vision and put my imprint on the draft. … and try to get the best person and player for the Sixers.”

As of Monday night, the Sixers do not have a pick in Wednesday’s second round. Yet what they do Tuesday will help dictate how they approach free agency, which begins the evening of June 30. Starting wing Kelly Oubre Jr., sixth man Quentin Grimes, and reserve big man Andre Drummond are all unrestricted free agents. And the Sixers have limited financial flexibility with Maxey, Joel Embiid, and Paul George on max contracts for multiple seasons.

For the prospects assembled Monday in New York City, however, the wait for their NBA destination is almost over. Michigan forward Yaxel Lendeborg, who spent his teenage years in Pennsauken and is projected to go somewhere in the middle of the first round, half-jokingly called these final hours “really, really awful.”

“I’m feeling emotion in the book,” he said Monday. “But I’m getting very impatient, in a way. I want to know where I’m going.”

The same likely could be said for the Sixers, now beginning the Gansey era with the 22nd overall pick.