The Comedian wrote:5InOfLouisville wrote:The Comedian wrote:
I'd 100% have done that as well, trading Smart would devastate me. But yeah it's not going to happen, which is a shame, him and Tatum are a perfect fit.
I don't think anybody who shrinks the floor and closes lanes on offense is a perfect fit with Tatum. Or really any dynamic wing.
Embiid doesn't really do that though, the problem is both him and Simmons together clog the lanes. It's so easy to double Embiid with the Sixers being such a horribly flawed roster. You surround him with elite outside shooters? Good luck. Him and Tatum running PnR's or forcing switches would be beyond deadly.
Simmons is more the problem, and if the Sixers keep him instead of Embiid, more power to them. The last two seasons the Sixers have a better net rating with Simmons on the bench than when he is in the game, when Embiid is out they have fallen off a cliff.
I don't necessarily mean that it COULDN'T work. And i do believe that, in a vacuum, Embiid is "better" than smart/brown, but in my mind, it's just hard to pay any "traditional" big man max money in the modern era.
The "perfect" fit, for Taytum or any other dynamic wing, always has to open up the floor, in my mind. Embiid doesn't do that because he isn't a credible outside threat.
Now, a big man can also open up lanes by being super active, setting screens and constantly moving, but I don't think Embiid does that either. Theis does this AND stretch the floor and he's much cheaper.
Again, not saying Theis is better than Embiid, or that I couldn't talk myself into an Embiid trade in 2 seconds if it happened.