Ranking Sixers’ hypothetical Ben Simmons trade targets: Move heaven and earth
2. Bradley Beal
Bradley Beal is one of the most gifted scorers in recent NBA history. Last season, he averaged 31.3 points, which fell just shy of Stephen Curry for the league scoring title. It would have been his second in a row. Beal can fill it up like very few others, and is probably a top-20 player. The Wizards have shown no inclination to trade him, but Washington also has no path to contention. It’s no unreasonable to expect a trade request at some point. It just may or may not align with the Ben Simmons sweepstakes.
If the Wizards trade Beal, there aren’t too many better building blocks than Simmons. Other teams would pursue him hard, and perhaps Simmons is no longer enough after his epic second-round collapse. That said, Morey is a clever deal-maker. The Wizards haven’t had a good defense in a while, and Simmons would put them on the right track.
A big potential drawback for Washington is the inevitable time spent with Simmons and Russell Westbrook on the court together. The Wizards won’t be able to trade Westbrook without attaching assets, and while a Beal trade would give them plenty of extra picks, odds are Westbrook will stick around until at least 2022-23, the final year on his contract.
If the Sixers can use Simmons, the young guns (Thybulle, Maxey), and picks to pry Beal away from Washington, it’s a no-brainer. He’s too talented a scorer not to thrive as Embiid’s partner in crime. Unfortunately, the Sixers are facing an uphill battle in this pursuit.