Scenario 1: trade the pick
The first possible scenario playing out is Colangelo and the Sixers trading the first overall pick. Now, before you go ahead and say that this is something completely foolish, let’s think about what the Sixers could get in return for this.
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It’s always tough trying to trade lottery picks for real players, simply because any draft pick is going to be unproven and their longevity in the NBA is completely unknown. A player that is slated to be a star in the pros could end up being a bust instantly, leaving a team that has an already established star leery to trade them away for a draft pick.
With all the talk about the potential Ben Simmons has, however, some teams may be open to getting a player like that on their roster.
The top overall pick is valued at $100 million, meaning that the Sixers could get a contract of around that much for the top pick. That’s purely money talk, and has nothing to do with what teams would actually trade for the top overall pick.
One of the most coveted players for Sixers fans has been Paul George, who is currently making $58.5 million over the next three years. So the money works out. It would be just a matter of convincing a team like the Pacers to trade away their star like George.
The likelihood of this scenario is very slim. Although I think it may be talked about, it will quickly be dismissed. It would take a lot of effort on the Sixers part to get a worthwhile deal done with the first overall pick, and they will get more in the long run out of keeping the pick than they will trading it.
Next: Trade down to 2