Could the Philadelphia 76ers trade for Russell Westbrook?

Could the Philadelphia 76ers trade for a future Hall of Fame point guard?

The Philadelphia 76ers have been tied to several elite guards this offseason. Chris Paul and James Harden have both been tied to the Sixers in rumors thus far this fall. Both are future Hall of Famers, but is there another future Hall of Famer that both guards are connected to that the 76ers could trade for?

Russell Westbrook is the other point guard that is in question. Paul was traded for Westbrook this past offseason and Harden has been his teammate on multiple occasions. Westbrook is arguably the most athletic point guards in NBA History and is the only other player outside of Oscar Robertson to average a triple-double. He has a career average of 23.2 points, 7.1 rebounds, and 8.3 assists.

Could the Sixers land Westbrook?

In terms of whether or not Philly could trade for the former MVP, the answer is yes they could. They have the big contracts to match Westbrook’s supermax contract he currently has. Out of all the Sixers players, Tobias Harris would probably be the one traded as his deal is the closest to matching Westbrook’s contract.

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Westbrook is set to make $41 million next season and next season Harris is going to make $33.5 million. Add another player like Josh Richardson or two players like Mike Scott and Zhaire Smith that could make up the difference. Houston would ask for a first round pick or two which the 76ers are capable of sending.

Getting a workable trade to land Westbrook in Philly is possible and the Sixers could do it. However, it makes no sense for the 76ers trade for a player who averaged a triple-double for three straight seasons. On the surface, it may sound absurd, but Westbrook and Philly aren’t a good match.

Westbrook is a career 30.5 percent 3-point shooter for his career and only shot 25.8 percent from deep last season. He would not fix the spacing issues between Philly’s two stars in Joel Embiid and Ben Simmons.

He just doesn’t fit Philly’s core and trading out one of them for him doesn’t make much sense either. Westbrook is 31-years-old and close to leaving the prime of his career, whereas Simmons and Embiid are in their mid-20s entering the primes of their careers. It would make no sense for the Sixers to trade either of their stars for Westbrook.

Next. One potential trade with each Southwest Division team. dark

Westbrook doesn’t fit either with the Philadelphia 76ers star nor should he replace one of them moving forward. While the Sixers could trade for Westbrook, under no circumstances should they.