Trading with teams in the Southeast Division gives the Philadelphia 76ers some interesting options.
Thus far in this series of articles, I’ve covered potential trades for the Philadelphia 76ers with teams in the Pacific, Northwest, and Southwest Divisions. With the Western Conference divisions covered it’s time to move on to the Eastern Conference and the Southeast Division
One potential trade with each Southeast Division team: Atlanta Hawks
The Atlanta Hawks are one of the few teams this offseason who are going to have cap space this offseason. They are also in a rebuild and need a veteran presence in the locker. Especially with Jeff Teague becoming a free agent and Vince Carter retiring. With that in mind, the hypothetical trade below makes sense for both clubs.
Al Horford gets to go back to the franchise that drafted him and where he spent the first nine seasons in the NBA. He made four All-Star teams with Atlanta and based on the length of his current deal, if he were traded to the Hawks, then they’d probably be the team he ends his career with.
He’d make a nice one-two punch at the center position with Clint Capela and is a great compliment with John Collins. Theoretically, he should help push the Hawks back into playoff contention, despite their young roster still in the early stages of development.
Only getting a second round pick to take on Horford’s horrible contract may seem like an undersell, but considering that the Sixers getting back center Dewayne Deadmon who is overpaid based on his production as well. Despite Horford being at the tail end of his career, he’s still a much better player than Deadmon, so the draft compensation is more than fair.
While on the subject of Deadmon, despite not being as good as Horford, he’d be a good backup center for Joel Embiid. For his career, Deadmon averaged 6.4 points, 6.0 rebounds, and 0.9 blocks. He can kinda space the floor as he’s shot 33.3 percent from deep for his career.
This should be a win-win for both clubs. The Hawks get their own second round pick and a former player that can help mentor their new young talent. The Sixers get some salary-cap relief and a solid backup for Embiid.