Two blockbuster trades the Sixers should consider on draft night
By Daniel Stets
The Philadelphia 76ers should strongly consider acquiring Jimmy Butler.
The NBA draft is almost here. The Philadelphia 76ers, armed with the number three pick, max cap space, and multiple future draft picks, have a plethora of options come draft night. Here are two blockbuster trades Philly should consider on June 22.
Why Philadelphia does it: Philadelphia gets an elite two way player to pair with their current core. Jimmy Butler, Robert Covington, and Joel Embiid would make Philadelphia one of the best defenses in then NBA. Jimmy Butler would be an amazing secondary ball handler to Ben Simmons. The one concern with this team is that Philadelphia would have questionable spacing. However, that’s a small price to pay to acquire Jimmy Butler. Philadelphia could sign a Patty Mills type player if they felt they needed more spacing.
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Why Chicago does it: Chicago isn’t going anywhere with Jimmy Butler. Their core is an old Dwyane Wade, Rajon Rondo, and Robin Lopez. That’s a fringe eight seed in the Eastern Conference. Chicago receives an athletic young wing in Luwawu-Cabarrot. They take a flier on Jahlil Okafor, who is from Chicago, and in this scenario finally gets out of Philadelphia. Chicago also gets three draft picks, which should help their rebuild post Jimmy Butler.
Trade #2 — The three-team Paul George deal
Indiana receives: Jerryd Bayless, Channing Frye, Dario Saric, No. 3 Pick, 2018 1st Rounder (top 8 protected), rights to Furkan Korkmaz
Why Philadelphia does it: Philadelphia gets an elite scoring point guard in Kyrie Irving. Not only this, Kyrie is in the prime of his career, and he fits Philadelphia’s timeline. Ben Simmons and Kyrie Irving would be a great duo, due to Ben Simmons’ passing and Kyrie’s scoring prowess.
Why Indiana does it: The rumors that Paul George has his eyes set on LA is the worst kept secret in the NBA. If Indiana doesn’t feel they can keep George, this trade makes sense. They get two young prospects in Dario Saric and Furkan Korkmaz, the number three pick, and a future first. Indiana could take Josh Jackson and build around Jackson, Saric, and Turner.
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Why Cleveland does it: Cleveland gets Paul George, and is able to let LeBron play the four when Cleveland inevitably plays Golden State in the finals next year. George gives Cleveland a player who can guard Durant, which takes a lot of pressure off of LeBron defensively. Cleveland gets T.J. McConnell, who obviously isn’t as good as Irving. However, McConnell is on a dirt cheap contract for the next two years. Cleveland dumps the contracts of Channing Frye and Iman Shumpert. Cleveland takes back Gerald Henderson’s contract, however his contract only is guaranteed for one million dollars. Cleveland trades Kyrie, but they get back Paul George, a cheap T.J. McConnell, and they clear some cap space.
Please note: This is under the assumption that the Sixers do not trade for the first overall pick.