There is no simply no debate following the Sixers’ crushing loss to the Atlanta Hawks — the Sixers absolutely have to trade Ben Simmons.
The good news for fans is that there is likely going to be no debate within the Sixers’ front office on what to do either. It seems an almost certainty that Daryl Morey will be trading Simmons. It is just a matter of where the Sixers trade him and what they can get back in return.
The bad news is that following a terrible series against the Hawks, Simmons’ value is at an all-time low. Yes, he plays great defense, but he is a point guard that won’t shoot, and a max-level player that made three total shots in the fourth quarter during the seven-game series. Add in that he is currently in the first year of a five-year, $177 million contract and there is no question the team will have to add assets in a Simmons trade to get back good value.
Related
The tough path to a Simmons trade doesn't mean the Sixers should bring him back. They can't. The Sixers will have to find a trade partner. They have no choice.
Who could it be?
Let’s run through some of the potential big-name options that will be discussed all offseason:
Damian Lillard: If Morey wants to earn his reputation as one of the best deal-makers in the NBA, this is the move to make. Lillard is everything the Sixers need — he is clutch, he can shoot from anywhere on the court and would fit perfectly with Joel Embiid. He also, for maybe the first time in his career, seems open to moving teams. Lillard seems against joining “super teams”, and coming to Philadelphia seems a nice mix between going to a team ready to win but not joining the “super teams” he hates.
The problem, of course, is that lots of teams will want Lillard and Simmons’ value is at an all-time low. The Sixers will need to include more than just Simmons, and that will start with one or both of the two young, promising players they have in Matisse Thybulle or Tyrese Maxey — plus lots of draft picks.
Landing Lillard, however, gets the window open for a Sixers’ title and would be worth trading whatever it takes to get him.
The Trade: Simmons, Maxey, 2022, 2024 & 2026 1st-round picks
Bradley Beal: Unlike Lillard, Beal doesn’t seem open to leaving Washington yet. Since that would be a massive mistake by him, however, perhaps he is convinced by the people who care about him to ask out. If he does, he would require the same kind of massive trade package the Sixers would have to trade to get Lillard. Simmons alone isn’t getting the Sixers anywhere near a deal for Beal.
The Trade: Simmons, Maxey, 2022, 2024 & 2026 1st-round picks
CJ McCollum: If the Blazers don’t trade Lillard they could try to move McCollum to mix things up in Portland. Or, if they do trade Lillard to somewhere other than Philadelphia, they could move McCollum as well to complete the blowup. Either way, McCollum is a player the Sixers should have interest in. McCollum wouldn’t be the same kind of addition Lillard would be, but he is exactly what the Sixers need, as he averaged 23.1 points-per-game and shot 40% from three on 8.9 attempts.
Simmons isn’t anywhere as good as McCollum, so the Sixers would have to package picks with him if they did make a deal with the Blazers — but likely not as much as they would have to in a deal for Lillard.
The Trade: Simmons, 2023 1st-round pick for McCollum
Steph Curry: Maybe Curry decides he wants out of Golden State, decides he wants to play with fellow Under Armour athlete Joel Embiid and his brother Seth in Philadelphia? Maybe the Warriors grant his wish and take a worse deal from the Sixers to make Curry happy?
Ok, back to reality.
The Trade: Whatever combination of picks/players the Warriors want other than Embiid
Zach LaVine: LaVine is probably the best option the Sixers can hope that is a step below the quality of Lillard and Beal. LaVine is coming off of a season where he averaged a career-high 27.4 points and shot 41% from three on 8.2 attempts. He is just 26-years old and projects to be the exact kind of wing-scorer the Sixers need in the clutch.
The question, of course, is why the Bulls would trade him. They just added Nikola Vucevic and will likely want to see what the duo can do together next season. Also, if they did trade LaVine, why would they do it for Simmons, who is a terrible fit with Vucevic.
Yet again, Simmons’ terrible season means the Sixers will likely have to pay way more now to get LaVine than if they tried even just a few months ago.
The Trade: Simmons, Thybulle, 2023 1st-round pick for LaVine and Al-Farouq Aminu
Kyle Lowry: Lowry might be the best player the Sixers can get without having to package anything significant with Simmons. Lowry is a free agent, and if the Sixers are willing to pay him a big-money deal, the Raptors could take Simmons instead of just letting Lowry walk. Trading Simmons for the right to overpay Lowry is a sign of just how bad things have gotten with Simmons, but it might be the Sixers’ best option.
Lowry is 35-years old, but there is no question the Sixers are better with him instead of Simmons. Handing Lowry a big contract will likely hurt the team in the future, but the Sixers would still be title contenders next season with Lowry, Embiid and Tobias Harris.
The Trade: Simmons for Lowry (sign-and-trade)
You can reach Eliot Shorr-Parks on Twitter at @EliotShorrParks or email him at esp@94wip.com!