You can spark up as many hypothetical trade proposals as you want, but allow me to inject a little dose of reality by declaring there's no chance the Philadelphia 76ers will acquire Anthony Davis from the Pelicans, or via free agency. It would be a difficult fit with Joel Embiid and not suitable for today's NBA game that is heavily relied on three-pointers. It's fun to think about and Davis' stardom is certainly evident, but let's leave fantasy island for the present day issues facing this basketball team.
The 76ers top priority, short and long term, should be making the Jimmy Butler situation work on court, and apparently off court if you want to believe the rumors that are floated around, mostly by the four lettered powerhouse called ESPN.
It's funny how until ESPN reported in early January that Butler was engaged in an aggressive conversation with Brett Brown during a film session, everything seemed A-OK with the third member of the Sixers "Big 3." Since then, ESPN also said, or in my opinion speculated, that Butler is "on thin ice" with Philadelphia. Credit to ESPN for getting these apparent scoops, and they could very well be accurate, but let's look at the most important fact that's already on the table.
The 76ers are 23-12 since Butler put on a Sixers uniform heading to Tuesday night, so it doesn't matter how much reported tension there is behind close doors, if any. As long as the Sixers win, Butler needs to stay in Philadelphia and be extended with a max contract.
Furthermore, I'm skeptical about the type of value Butler would have in a trade. Think about it for a moment. If the Sixers try to flip Butler for someone other than an Anthony Davis-type superstar, wouldn't that give off the impression that he's more trouble than he's worth? Why would the Sixers give up so quickly on Butler unless he was more of a headache than they were looking for? Why would a team with any sort of brains give the 76ers significant value for potential a three-time malcontent? And if you're going to argue that trading Butler could be a sign the Sixers want some sort of value before he hits the open market, my argument is why not sign in then?
If Butler is elsewhere next season, and leaves through free agency, the Sixers essentially lost three starters in Butler, Robert Covington and Dario Saric for a partial season with Butler. That's not a healthy way to run a franchise looking to compete for a title.
Regardless of whether you're a fan of Butler, the fact remains the Sixers need to make this an effective relationship long term based on what's already happened. You need three starts to give the Warriors a run at a championship. The Sixers were hoping Markelle Fultz would become that third star. Obviously, that hasn't happened, and the odds appear to be stacked against that, at this point.
Although the team denies it, Butler is what Fultz was supposed to be. The success of the team greatly hinges on his ability to win with Embiid and Ben Simmons. There can't be a Plan B, otherwise it's two steps back after taking one step forward.
