Goals for Sixers training camp: Honest player evaluation
Before the 76ers can make a trade, they need to understand where they stand. That means making sober assessments of where they are as a team and how each player has developed over the short offseason. Only with an understanding of where each player is can the 76ers properly address their weaknesses.
Here are the most important player evaluations to make:
- Tyrese Maxey
With Ben on his way out of town, Tyrese projects to run the point in only his second season in the NBA. The Sixers need to see in training camp if he can run the point and how the offense looks.
If Tyrese struggles, then the 76ers need to prioritize getting another point guard in a trade. With Joel Embiid’s limited timeline for winning a title, the 76ers cannot afford to dedicate a season to developing a struggling Maxey. Daryl might have to pull the trigger earlier on a Ben trade to avoid early-season losses that could put the team out of playoff contention.
If Tyrese is up to the task, then Daryl has a little more flexibility in what to do with Ben. He can wait until the right trade materializes while the team hovers around the fourth or fifth seed. He can also target shooters and other perimeter creators, rather than a point guard.
- Danny Green and Matisse Thybulle
Although the season ended only a couple of months ago, the 76ers need to see if Danny Green, who missed most of the series against the Hawks with an injury, has lost a step. Nobody expects him to be the same 3-and-D phenom from his time on the Spurs. But is he still good enough to cover other team’s top wing threats?
The Danny Green evaluation goes hand-in-hand with evaluating Matisse Thybulle. Possibly the best defender in the NBA, Thybulle also fills the 3-and-D role. Unfortunately, he is not nearly as reliable a 3-point shooter as Danny.
Although playing for the Australian National Team in the Olympics gave him a chance for more playing time, it also meant he spent less time practicing 3-pointers in the offseason. GM Daryl Morey will have to evaluate his 3-point shooting to see if he can be relied on in the season.
If Thybulle has not improved his 3-point shooting, then it may be hard to play him in some lineups. Morey should then make sure any Ben trade brings back a starter with solid defensive chops.
In the rosiest of worlds, Danny is the same player he was last year and Thybulle has significantly improved his 3-point shooting. If that is the case, then the 76ers can trade Ben without having to urgently replace his defensive abilities. Thybulle’s defense could complement any lineup featuring a backcourt defensive liability, such as CJ McCollum, should the Sixers trade for him.
There are other important player evaluations to make, such as Paul Reed vs. Andre Drummond and Isiah Joe, but they do not significantly impact the Ben Simmons trade analysis.