Philadelphia 76ers: An Al Horford draft day trade should happen
The Philadelphia 76ers need to try to trade Al Horford during the 2020 NBA Draft.
The Philadelphia 76ers are in a tough spot. Their current roster doesn’t fit well together, but Al Horford‘s and Tobias Harris’ contracts make it near impossible to make major changes. While Harris is probably untradeable right now, Horford’s not.
Horford’s contract isn’t pretty, worth roughly $81 million over the past three years. That’s way too much for a center past his prime. Last year, he averaged 11.9 points, 6.8 rebounds, and 4.0 assists. Despite his bad season by his standards, he’s still better than half of the starting centers in the league and has value for the right team.
Besides the NBA trade deadline, the NBA draft is probably the second most active time of the year for trades. If there was ever a good time to trade Horford and get decent value for him, the 2020 NBA draft would be that time.
Trading Horford during the draft makes sense for the Sixers.
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With all the new young players being added to teams via the draft, there is bound to some player move. There have already been some agreed-upon trades already with players like Chris Paul and Jrue Holiday on the move.
This draft is unusual with no elite talent at the top and a lot of solid players available in the middle. A team looking to upgrade their center position could be an ideal landing spot for Horford. One team that comes to mind is the Charlotte Hornets, as James Bu of Swam and Sting recently suggested.
Whether it be with the Hornets or another team, as I wrote in the past, the draft seems like an ideal time to trade Horford. There’s no need in trying to save him for a potential James Harden trade, he’s not going to get a deal done for Harden. Try to trade him now during the draft because teams probably won’t be more desperate for help at the center spot now than any other time this season unless a major injury occurs.
Next. NBA Draft 2020: Sixers guide, mock draft, everything you need to know. dark
The 2020 NBA Draft is going to be one of the best times to trade Horford as teams clamor to find a legitimate starting center heading into this upcoming season.