The relationship between the Philadelphia 76ers and Ben Simmons isn’t good. There’s a chance it could get worse if things drag out. Trying to find a good trade to get Simmons out of should be on the mind of Darryl Morey, the Sixers president of basketball operations.
Now it should be noted that it’s been reported that Simmons is interested in being traded to a team in California, according to Jason Dumas of Bleacher Report. That state is the home of four NBA franchises which does give the 76ers some options if they want to work with Simmons.
There’s at least one trade that Philly could make with each of these franchises in order to move on from Simmons.
Potential Simmons trades with each California team: Los Angeles Clippers
Let’s start with the Los Angeles Clippers as they are a title contender when healthy. They already have an elite core of two superstars in Kawhi Leonard and Paul George, as well as the quality depth of shooters and big men.
However, they lack an elite playmaker on their roster. Patrick Beverley is a 3-and-D point guard who doesn’t really run an offense, Reggie Jackson is a score first point guard, and Rajon Rondo is well past his prime.
It’s clear they need a point guard and below is probably the best hypothetical package that they could offer for the Sixers All-Star playmaker.
To be honest, this isn’t a great deal for the 76ers. Due to the trade that landed the Clippers George drained them of draft picks. The most Philly could get in terms of picks is a 2027 first round pick and 2028 first round pick swap. Beverley’s a solid defender and 3-point shooter but nothing more. Luke Kennard is a very good shooter when used in the right shooter, but isn’t an All-Star player.
Terance Mann is the main piece of this trade. Last season he average 7.0 points on 41.8 percent from the 3-point line. However, he has big time potential as a score. In the playoffs he had 39-point game in the second round of the playoffs. However, at the age of 24 years old, he doesn’t have All-Star potential at his point.
Overall, this isn’t a great deal, but if the Sixers want to send Simmons to the Clippers this would be one way to get a trade done.