With the offseason starting to fade into its closing moments, the Philadelphia 76ers remain seated as one of the teams with the most lackluster summers so far. Aside from dealing with the delimiting James Harden situation, the front office hasn’t done much to move the needle for the team and improve in the upcoming season after yet another dispiriting postseason exit, at least on paper.
At this rate, even another MVP-worthy season from Joel Embiid may not be enough to catapult them into an inarguable position to contend for a championship. If so, the current uncertainty the franchise finds itself in may eventually culminate into a full-blown turmoil. Certainly, the entirety of Philadelphia would hate to go through another lengthy process.
The Philadelphia 76ers have to be more proactive heading to the regular season
The longer the Harden saga drags on, the less leeway the 76ers have in composing the roster heading into the regular season, which is only a tad more than a couple of months away. And with the former MVP’s camp already firm as a stone on his trade request, the front office should be more proactive instead of staying passive and waiting for offers to reach their benchmark, which has been repeatedly described as too lofty.
Philly’s brass has limited options at this juncture in their quest to finally settle in and reach a conclusion with Harden, but this three-team blockbuster trade proposal could give what the 76ers exactly what they need as they attempt to bolster their title bid next season.
The 76ers swap Harden for another All-Star in this three-team blockbuster
In this proposed three-team trade, the Philadelphia 76ers acquire All-Star wing DeMar DeRozan and two future second-round draft picks via the Dallas Mavericks, which land James Harden in this deal. Meanwhile, the Chicago Bulls obtain big man Christian Wood via a sign-and-trade, veteran guard Tim Hardaway Jr., and a future first-round pick from Dallas in 2027.
DeRozan, a six-time All-Star, remains one of the more potent scorers in the league. Even with the absence of a three-point shot, the soon-to-be 34-year-old’s scoring acumen remains top-notch with his mid-range mastery, elite foul-drawing skills, and ability to score in traffic. Last season, he finished second in the Bulls roster with 24.5 points per outing, slightly below Zach LaVine’s 24.8 average.
Like Harden, DeRozan will enter unrestricted free agency upon the conclusion of the 2023-24 season, meaning that the front office will be able to retain ample financial flexibility even if they acquire him. That being said, can the veteran scorer give the 76ers the push they need to get over the hump in the East?
Is DeMar DeRozan the one that can push the 76ers over the top?
DeMar DeRozan is one of the most dangerous scorers in the game. However, ever since being traded out of Toronto and its jam-packed teams, he has had a difficult time leading his clubs to win anything meaningful. From being one of the core players which snapped the Spurs’ historic playoff streak, flaming out after a sizzling start to an overachieving season for Chicago two seasons ago to eventually missing the postseason in the last campaign, DeRozan hasn’t been pegged as a winner for quite some time now.
Still, the 76ers can present him with a situation he hasn’t been in with a roster clearly capable of winning it all when all the right buttons click. Between Embiid, Maxey, him, and other battle-tested veterans, Philly can have all the tools it needs to topple the likes of Boston, Miami, and Milwaukee.
With DeRozan, the 76ers can have a true play finisher outside of Embiid who can greatly benefit from Maxey’s playmaking, which should improve with much more reps next season. The team clearly struggled in the playoffs in late stretches, an area where DeRozan’s shot creation and ability to draw fouls can come in handily.
Moreso, DeRozan has become a very good playmaker since taking on primary table-setting duties in San Antonio. He’s very skilled and efficient in pinpointing shooters on the perimeter while driving to the lane, deceptive enough to soak in the defense and hunt for an open teammate under the guise of a shot attempt. This should be very welcome to a Sixers team not bereft of perimeter threats and pot scorers.
Oh, and again, DeRozan is entering the final year of his contract. Should this rental not pay off, the 76ers can simply move on and save a ton of cap space.
However, will those be enough?
Why the 76ers should avoid a deal to acquire DeMar DeRozan
For all the merits of adding DeMar DeRozan, even at Harden’s expense, there are reasons why welcoming a trade for him to land in Philly could be a huge gamble.
For starters, DeRozan is a non-factor behind the three-point line. For a starting unit led by a post-heavy center in Embiid and surrounded by a non-scorer in PJ Tucker and a hit-and-miss scorer in Tobias Harris, blending DeRozan in could be too vintage to even function properly, as it would leave Maxey as the only consistent three-point threat in the opening group.
Also, imagine the cramped space if the 76ers could the traditional yet sensible route of trying a twin-tower lineup with Embiid and Paul Reed, whom they have invested in quite a lot for the upcoming season.
Substituting De’Anthony Melton for Tucker could be viable, but the crevice that the demotion of Tucker could create is a great segway to another of DeRozan’s weaknesses: perimeter defense. His lack of defensive acuity is over-pronounced, but he is definitely not a reliable option in that regard.
As his play style is quite the demanding one physically, he simply has do not much left in the tank to be a factor on that end unless the 76ers are willing to cut off his responsibilities on offense. And offense is, well, his main selling point.
Ultimately, even without any substantial risks involved, getting DeMar DeRozan still feels like a concession for the Philadelphia 76ers, especially considering the more interesting options that could become available moving forward. Hence, even with his edge over James Harden in the availability and off-court attitude departments, it’s difficult to see this making the team improve enough with him in the mix.
Grade: C+