Marc Stein: Toronto has expressed interest in Ben Simmons

[Mark_83]

Siakam alone is worth more than Simmons

No way we give them a pick and GTJ too

Siakam is worth more than Simmons? Come on, Ali. Take off the homer goggles. Ok, Simmons can't shoot. Great. He does everything else well. He's an elite defender and perennial all-defensive team player, who is also an elite passer and ball handler at his size. Surround him with shooters like the Bucks do with Giannis, and suddenly the script flips.

What exactly is Siakam elite at? Simmons has better stats per 40 and a better FG%.

Not to mention, we are one of the best teams in the league at developing non-shooters. Pascal didn't come here knowing how to shoot the three. OG came in a piss poor free throw shooter. Maybe, Ben is too arrogant and set in his ways to be taught, but that's not a skill issue, that's a makeup issue that we don't have insight into as fans. If he's willing to learn/work, we have the staff in place to help him.

So you’re accounting for us fixing him into his valuation?

Siakam is a proven number 2 and would easily make the Sixers a better playoff team

Also cmon you can’t be serious in saying that Simmons has a better fg%. All he does is layups in dunks. If he wasn’t shooting a better percentage that would be horrendous considering he doesn’t take any jump shots

Even without fixing him I rate him better than Pascal. He's also 3 years younger. Like I said, what elite skill does Pascal have? He's a very good all around player. Good defender. Good passer. Good rebounder. But he's not elite at any of those things. At the very least Simmons is an elite defender, passer, and ball handler if nothing else. You're complaining that his percentages are high because he's shooting layups and dunks? Pascal's FG% is inconsistent cause he relies too much on floaters and push shots.

The reason to flip Pascal for Simmons is, their salaries match, Pascal has value, and they would be redundant together as Ben Simmons would ideally be playing the point-4 position surrounded by shooters and scorers.

[Bruin]

First time I’ve ever heard of that Twitter account so I’m sceptical

I’ve been following them for couple years now. Don’t want to say they’re reliable cause I’m not sure but they’ve generally been pretty reliable with stuff regarding the national team

So considering they’re citing their source as a connection from back when Murray was a prospect and working out for Philly then idk

[phanman]

Fricken hilarious how offence is just an afterthought on this team. All we do is load up on defence and then wonder why we can’t score in the playoffs. That Boston series was atrocious.

The Raptors won a championship because they had the second best defense of all time with timely scoring. Tactics is probably to focus on defense and jump when that one offensive player becomes available.

Jump how? In a trade that strips the team of its most valuable assets? Or in free agency, which has never happened? Only way we’re getting top end offensive talent is through the draft.

Indeed I would SUGGest we keep that #4 pick.

[Tha Cynic]

Fricken hilarious how offence is just an afterthought on this team. All we do is load up on defence and then wonder why we can’t score in the playoffs. That Boston series was atrocious.

The Raptors won a championship because they had the second best defense of all time with timely scoring. Tactics is probably to focus on defense and jump when that one offensive player becomes available.

Jump how? In a trade that strips the team of its most valuable assets? Or in free agency, which has never happened? Only way we’re getting top end offensive talent is through the draft.

The Raptors are stacked with assets. They could beat any team's realistic offer for any player who is available. It comes down to what the ask is.

[Bruin]

Siakam is worth more than Simmons? Come on, Ali. Take off the homer goggles. Ok, Simmons can't shoot. Great. He does everything else well. He's an elite defender and perennial all-defensive team player, who is also an elite passer and ball handler at his size. Surround him with shooters like the Bucks do with Giannis, and suddenly the script flips.

What exactly is Siakam elite at? Simmons has better stats per 40 and a better FG%.

Not to mention, we are one of the best teams in the league at developing non-shooters. Pascal didn't come here knowing how to shoot the three. OG came in a piss poor free throw shooter. Maybe, Ben is too arrogant and set in his ways to be taught, but that's not a skill issue, that's a makeup issue that we don't have insight into as fans. If he's willing to learn/work, we have the staff in place to help him.

So you’re accounting for us fixing him into his valuation?

Siakam is a proven number 2 and would easily make the Sixers a better playoff team

Also cmon you can’t be serious in saying that Simmons has a better fg%. All he does is layups in dunks. If he wasn’t shooting a better percentage that would be horrendous considering he doesn’t take any jump shots

Even without fixing him I rate him better than Pascal. He's also 3 years younger. Like I said, what elite skill does Pascal have? He's a very good all around player. Good defender. Good passer. Good rebounder. But he's not elite at any of those things. At the very least Simmons is an elite defender, passer, and ball handler if nothing else. You're complaining that his percentages are high because he's shooting layups and dunks? Pascal's FG% is inconsistent cause he relies too much on floaters and push shots.

The reason to flip Pascal for Simmons is, their salaries match, Pascal has value, and they would be redundant together as Ben Simmons would ideally be playing the point-4 position surrounded by shooters and scorers.

I think you’re just overvaluing Simmons. They’re clearly trying to trade him cause he’s useless offensively. A guy who’s too scared to finish a dunk because Trae young is nearby is more valuable than Siakam?

The only benefit I give to Simmons is that he’s younger otherwise Siakam has a more complete game and easily elevates the Sixers in the playoffs more than Simmons

[Grew]

Highly doubt Masai is talking about trading Pascal or #4. This would be some type of Kyle sign and trade with future picks, maybe sign and trade GTJ aswell, not sure how it would work money wise but that's not my job.

The goal would probably be something like Fred/Suggs/OG/Pascal/Simmons. Unreal versatility and defense, we just would need some shooters and a true big to fill out the rotations.

I don't see Masai trading a core piece, he would want to add Simmons to the core, not arbitrarily exchange him with Pascal. If he can't get it done, then it doesn't happen.

[alienchild]

Read on Twitter

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Read on Twitter

?s=21

Read on Twitter

?s=21

Please tell me this isn’t a reliable source……..please…….

I can send you pictures of that bridge in Arizona.....

[Bruin]

Highly doubt Masai is talking about trading Pascal or #4. This would be some type of Kyle sign and trade with future picks, maybe sign and trade GTJ aswell, not sure how it would work money wise but that's not my job.

The goal would probably be something like Fred/Suggs/OG/Pascal/Simmons. Unreal versatility and defense, we just would need some shooters and a true big to fill out the rotations.

I don't see Masai trading a core piece, he would want to add Simmons to the core, not arbitrarily exchange him with Pascal. If he can't get it done, then it doesn't happen.

On paper it looks good but the scoring is a concern. Also idk if Simmons could actually play the 5. I see him as a 4

[SFour]

Simmons is not a championship player.....no point in trading for him unless you're getting him for cheap...which would involve NOT giving up Siakam or the #4 pick.

like others have probably said...it would have to be Lowry, Gary TRent JR, and future picks on the table....anything else and it's not worth it.

[Mark_83]

So you’re accounting for us fixing him into his valuation?

Siakam is a proven number 2 and would easily make the Sixers a better playoff team

Also cmon you can’t be serious in saying that Simmons has a better fg%. All he does is layups in dunks. If he wasn’t shooting a better percentage that would be horrendous considering he doesn’t take any jump shots

Even without fixing him I rate him better than Pascal. He's also 3 years younger. Like I said, what elite skill does Pascal have? He's a very good all around player. Good defender. Good passer. Good rebounder. But he's not elite at any of those things. At the very least Simmons is an elite defender, passer, and ball handler if nothing else. You're complaining that his percentages are high because he's shooting layups and dunks? Pascal's FG% is inconsistent cause he relies too much on floaters and push shots.

The reason to flip Pascal for Simmons is, their salaries match, Pascal has value, and they would be redundant together as Ben Simmons would ideally be playing the point-4 position surrounded by shooters and scorers.

I think you’re just overvaluing Simmons. They’re clearly trying to trade him cause he’s useless offensively. A guy who’s too scared to finish a dunk because Trae young is nearby is more valuable than Siakam?

The only benefit I give to Simmons is that he’s younger otherwise Siakam has a more complete game and easily elevates the Sixers in the playoffs more than Simmons

1) No one has been traded, so we don't know "they're clearly trying" anything. These are called rumors.
2) Siakam has been in trade rumors for draft picks, so is he clearly useless too?
3) We're really going to judge a guy off one play? How about Siakam disappearing for an entire 7 game series last year and being afraid to shoot?
4) Saying SIakam has a more complete game than SImmons is just semantics. He has a jump shot more than him and that's it. In no other area is he superior except in maybe arguing with his coach and tripping opponents.

[SFour]

Pascal + future 1st + GTJ for Simmons.

Simmons
OG
Mobley
Lowry
FVV

What ??? Siakam is the better player !!! WHY ARE WE ADDING MORE!! What are you smoking ?

these are the same people that were saying Demar + OG + Siakam + picks for Kawhi back in 2018

good thing Masai and Bobby are the ones in charge

[C_Money]

Highly doubt Masai is talking about trading Pascal or #4. This would be some type of Kyle sign and trade with future picks, maybe sign and trade GTJ aswell, not sure how it would work money wise but that's not my job.

The goal would probably be something like Fred/Suggs/OG/Pascal/Simmons. Unreal versatility and defense, we just would need some shooters and a true big to fill out the rotations.

I don't see Masai trading a core piece, he would want to add Simmons to the core, not arbitrarily exchange him with Pascal. If he can't get it done, then it doesn't happen.

This exactly. Its the only way the trade would make sense on our end. Siakam for Simmons swap doesn’t do anything to help us.

I’d be skeptical about throwing Gary Trent in as well.

[Ackshun]

The more I think on it, the more I think it's bs. One of those "Toronto is interested in everyone" moments.

It makes no sense from the Philly angle. Why trade for Pascal when you are paying Tobias $34 million. If it's the pick, what salaries will make this work? Would pretty much have to be a Kyle s+t plus Boucher and filler but is that even a thing? Also, have we seen all stars thrown in to go the other way in a s+t scenario?

From Toronto's standpoint, we could trade FVV and Boucher but that leaves the cupboard bare and a terrible squad.

Golden State with the 3 way trade perhaps?

Golden State : Pascal
Toronto: Ben Simmons, #14
Philly: Wiggins, #7

[Bruin]

Even without fixing him I rate him better than Pascal. He's also 3 years younger. Like I said, what elite skill does Pascal have? He's a very good all around player. Good defender. Good passer. Good rebounder. But he's not elite at any of those things. At the very least Simmons is an elite defender, passer, and ball handler if nothing else. You're complaining that his percentages are high because he's shooting layups and dunks? Pascal's FG% is inconsistent cause he relies too much on floaters and push shots.

The reason to flip Pascal for Simmons is, their salaries match, Pascal has value, and they would be redundant together as Ben Simmons would ideally be playing the point-4 position surrounded by shooters and scorers.

I think you’re just overvaluing Simmons. They’re clearly trying to trade him cause he’s useless offensively. A guy who’s too scared to finish a dunk because Trae young is nearby is more valuable than Siakam?

The only benefit I give to Simmons is that he’s younger otherwise Siakam has a more complete game and easily elevates the Sixers in the playoffs more than Simmons

1) No one has been traded, so we don't know "they're clearly trying" anything. These are called rumors.
2) Siakam has been in trade rumors for draft picks, so is he clearly useless too?
3) We're really going to judge a guy off one play? How about Siakam disappearing for an entire 7 game series last year and being afraid to shoot?
4) Saying SIakam has a more complete game than SImmons is just semantics. He has a jump shot more than him and that's it. In no other area is he superior except in maybe arguing with his coach and tripping opponents.

1) so I guess you didn’t see they’ve opened up trade talks for Simmons
2) Siakam is involved because other teams want him. No rumors stating Raptors want to move him or are even open to it
3) even disregarding that 1 play, Simmons has failed in just about every playoff run and was horrendous the entire series
Siakam struggled as a 1st option, Simmons is basically 3rd option after Harris and still struggled
4) so a jump shot is something small? The gap in Simmons shot vs Siakam shot is larger than the gap in anything else between the two of them combined. Siakam is a good defender in his own right and has actually proven to be a great 2nd option in the playoffs. Something Simmons can’t even do as the 3rd (or even 4th with Seth Curry)

Simmons is a very flawed player so his value reflects that

[Mark_83]

Pascal + future 1st + GTJ for Simmons.

Simmons
OG
Mobley
Lowry
FVV

What ??? Siakam is the better player !!! WHY ARE WE ADDING MORE!! What are you smoking ?

these are the same people that were saying Demar + OG + Siakam + picks for Kawhi back in 2018

good thing Masai and Bobby are the ones in charge

I'm calling B.S. You'll struggle to find even 1/10 of the fanbase who wanted us to move OG for Kawhi back in 2018. So that leaves you with Demar + Siakam + picks. Replace Siakam with Squirtle and that was basically the deal.

[Blood Orange]

Although i'm not a fan of Ben Simmons whatsoever, if we do happen to get him, at least we won't be drafting Scottie Barnes at #4.

[HomieOmey]

Even without fixing him I rate him better than Pascal. He's also 3 years younger. Like I said, what elite skill does Pascal have? He's a very good all around player. Good defender. Good passer. Good rebounder. But he's not elite at any of those things. At the very least Simmons is an elite defender, passer, and ball handler if nothing else. You're complaining that his percentages are high because he's shooting layups and dunks? Pascal's FG% is inconsistent cause he relies too much on floaters and push shots.

The reason to flip Pascal for Simmons is, their salaries match, Pascal has value, and they would be redundant together as Ben Simmons would ideally be playing the point-4 position surrounded by shooters and scorers.

Being an elite defender is a tad overrated if you still need 4 scorers around you. I mean we basically saw that in Utah anyway, and Gobert still didn't provide enough offence for him to matter.

Siakam was borderline elite on defense before we made him do his best Derozan impression, was he not? You put Siakam/Simmons on the Lakers, Warriors, Bucks, Suns, Jazz, or Clippers (virtually any contender) and Siakam's ability to score and defend would be much more valuable than the advantage Simmons brings on defence. Like honestly, is there any contender other than the Nets that Simmons makes more sense for?

That being said, I do think rebuilding teams like the Magic and Thunder would prefer Simmons because of his age. For that reason alone, I'd be very open to a three way trade if we really want to rebuild a bit. I'm also open to the idea of Lowry (assuming he wants to go there) and Siakam for Simmons, a young wing, and salary filler if we want to take a bit of a step back while still having a solid young core in place.

[Mark_83]

I think you’re just overvaluing Simmons. They’re clearly trying to trade him cause he’s useless offensively. A guy who’s too scared to finish a dunk because Trae young is nearby is more valuable than Siakam?

The only benefit I give to Simmons is that he’s younger otherwise Siakam has a more complete game and easily elevates the Sixers in the playoffs more than Simmons

1) No one has been traded, so we don't know "they're clearly trying" anything. These are called rumors.
2) Siakam has been in trade rumors for draft picks, so is he clearly useless too?
3) We're really going to judge a guy off one play? How about Siakam disappearing for an entire 7 game series last year and being afraid to shoot?
4) Saying SIakam has a more complete game than SImmons is just semantics. He has a jump shot more than him and that's it. In no other area is he superior except in maybe arguing with his coach and tripping opponents.

1) so I guess you didn’t see they’ve opened up trade talks for Simmons
2) Siakam is involved because other teams want him. No rumors stating Raptors want to move him or are even open to it
3) even disregarding that 1 play, Simmons has failed in just about every playoff run and was horrendous the entire series
Siakam struggled as a 1st option, Simmons is basically 3rd option after Harris and still struggled
4) so a jump shot is something small? The gap in Simmons shot vs Siakam shot is larger than the gap in anything else between the two of them combined. Siakam is a good defender in his own right and has actually proven to be a great 2nd option in the playoffs. Something Simmons can’t even do as the 3rd (or even 4th with Seth Curry)

Simmons is a very flawed player so his value reflects that

Masai and Bobby came out and said that? Funny, I thought it was some Twitter account not affiliated with the team.

And Simmons is not involved cause team's want him? That's the most circular logic I've ever read.

Siakam struggled only because he was a first option? Ok, then why couldn't he still provide anything at all when we were forced to turn to other guys like Powell, Fred, and Lowry midway through the series? He couldn't even hit open corner threes by that point.

SIakam is a good defender. He's not an elite defender. I'm still waiting to hear what he's elite at. A jumpshot would be a much bigger deal if Pascal were actually good at it. He shot 29% from three last year. He's good on undefended catches, worse off the dribble.

[Tha Cynic]

Watch on YouTube

Still people are crazy if they think Siakam is worth more than Simmons.

[Tor_Raps]

While I think Simmons can be a good player, he just doesn't fit unless Siakam is headed out. I don't like Simmons enough to do that swap even if Siakam has his faults.