BoogieTime wrote:clippertown wrote:I get that the Simmons situation is a tough one. In my opinion, Philly has Embid with two years on his deal and everything must be done to get him believing that the franchise has a plan, or it all falls apart when Joel leaves for nothing. The Simmons situation is unresolvable and best handled by giving him what he wants, with the goal of making the team more competitive in the next TWO years, not for the long term future. Embid is a special talent and no matter what he needs to stay a Sixer.
Since Ben is demanding a trade to just three CA teams, this puts all other teams in a complex situation. If they trade young talent for Ben and he is unhappy, then they need to deal with locker room issues - basically inheriting Philly’s problems at the sacrifice of their own future. Sending Ben to Minny for example, would cost the Wolves a fortune and they would be guaranteed to lose him for nothing in four years, which won’t be good value. Small market teams want players that want them, especially when it costs a third of the cap. They don’t want players that can’t wait to leave, harming the team culture.
If GSW want Ben, they have the best assets. Wiseman and Wiggins (plus a few picks) have the greatest value, but does it really work for either team? For GSW, they have to figure out how to win with both Draymond and Ben on the floor. They also lose their best SF with nobody to replace him but Simmons (who would be a terrible SF). For Philly, they have to pay for Wiggins who won’t move the needle and get a backup C that is also not needed. The picks don’t help now, which is the goal.
For the Clippers, they can offer Morris Sr, Kennard, Mann and Reggie should they wait till Dec 15 or replace Reggie with Bledsoe (removing Kennard) if they want to act now. Whilst this offer is not at the correct value for Ben, it does actually help Philly compete today. Morris Sr is the perfect PF to play with Embid due to his ability to spread the floor and rebound. Kennard is a specialist at spreading the floor and distributing and is only 24. Mann is a brilliant defender with solid ability to hit the 3 from the corner. Reggie can handle the PG duties and step up under pressure. Even Bledsoe can return to the Bucks and be a solid presence, if that’s what the team desires. Overall, the Sixers are better immediately and that keeps Embid happier.
The Lakers have nothing to offer.
I get that in a perfect situation, Ben is worth an all-star return but considering the numerous issues, my question is whether the Sixers would become a better team this season if they traded Ben to the Clippers - regardless of long term value.
The Kings are part of the three
And I hope where he wants to play figures into what opposing teams will offer. I also hope Rich Paul will have sway over that as well
Typical LA fan (although admittedly it’s usually Laker Fan’s that do this) conveniently forgetting two things.
First there are four California teams.
Second, there are already known reports that the Lakers are a hard no for him. The three teams are the Dubs, Mings and Clippers.
The part you missed in your statement was three pieces.
First, Joe Lacob has already been quoted since before the draft as stating that they are keeping the youth. He knows he is rammed to the stratosphere paying out the current stars. He is looking at four times the base salaries this year with repeater tax. They have no option to trade away their developmental high draft picks. They must have some controlled and cheap talent coming up. And don’t pass Wiggins off as some kind of good deal. He was just rated as one of the ten worst contracts in the NBA. PHI already has one in Harris. They aren’t taking on two and nobody else is going to take in two more years of Wiggins.
You make some good points about the Clippers, but ultimately they aren’t that string of win now pieces, rather they are just pieces and not one of them stands out. And you have no draft picks to offer.
Side note, neither the Dubs nor the Clippers picks will really have any serious value (barring some complete collapse of their stars) until at least 2026 when their stars age out and they start to fall off.
Sacramento ultimately can beat anyone if McNair wants to pay the extra in picks. We have win now guys that fit the PHI roster and know their roles already. We have food picks and own all our own so can send whatever ends up being the reasonable ask when it’s time. And finally we actually have a roster pretty much no matter how you construct the players (salary) part of the trade, that can fit Simmons and improve with him.
I also see a multi team deal becoming a stronger possibility as time ticks by to fit all the needs of the interested teams.
Finally, I believe that any other team besides these three that think it’s going. To be made to work if they get Simmons are fooling g themselves and setting up fir a world of hurt and damage if they ignore his ask to the three teams specified. They also need to keep in mind to not cross Klutch before LeBron retires or they will not get any of their clients or will be out over the same barrel as PHI right now.
