Philadelphia 76ers From Slow Cooker To Microwave
By Bret Stuter
III. Use of NBA Trades
For the past three years, the Philadelphia 76ers have been involved in any number of trades- with the predominant version resulting in the Sixers absorbing significant salary cap of a player or players in exchange for draft picks and/or high ceiling prospects. In fact, it was a presumption if the Philadelphia 76ers were involved in a trade, the conditions were an NBA team dumping an excessive player contract to the Philadelphia 76ers along with draft pick(s) incentives.
It was one such salary dump, a move which brought both Carl Landry and Nik Stauskas to the Philadelphia 76ers from the Sacramento Kings, which epitomized the types of trades involving the Philadelphia 76ers.
As a result of the trade, the Sixers received Stauskas, Landry, and power forward/center Jason Thompson. Of the three, Thompson was the sole player whose inclusion in the trade to Philly was akin to a homecoming for him, as he was originally from Mount Laurel, New Jersey. But the team followed up by trading Thompson to the Golden State Warriors for another salary dump of Gerald Wallace and the rights to swap first round picks with the Warriors.
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But the winds of change had already shifted for the Sixers. As previously mentioned, the Philadelphia 76ers traded two draft picks to reunite with point guard Ish Smith. It was a change in that the Sixers spent, rather than received, draft picks in an exchange with another NBA team.
At the trade deadline in 2016, an “almost” trade was reported which involved the Philadelphia 76ers hot pursuit of Atlanta Hawks reserve point guard Dennis Schroder. The chapter is not complete, as reports included interest of both the Hawks and the Sixers to reengage in trade talks at the conclusion of the playoffs. But the philosophy of bolstering the teams roster with available talent from other teams was now firmly established. Which teams, and which players, will the Sixers pursue this off-season?
Without a true track record to fall upon, anything we suggest is speculative at this point. But it’s clear that if the Sixers feel that the team can improve, and if the means to do so are not available via the draft nor the free agency methods, the team will deal to improve.
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