Entering August, the Philadelphia 76ers have to feel good knowing they had one of the best offseason performances in the league. Going into the 2026-2027 NBA season, the Sixers will have notable additions such as LeBron James, Jaylen Brown, Anfernee Simons, Dean Wade, and Kentavious Caldwell-Pope.
Somebody out there on the internet wants to see the rich get richer. A rumor hit social media like wildfire, suggesting that the Portland Trail Blazers could cut ties with Jrue Holiday via buyout, and he would go back to where it all started in Philadelphia. A former Sixer, Evan Turner, believes such an acquisition would be a game-changing move.
"If Jrue Holiday goes to Philly then that's your 2027 NBA champions
Don't @ me," Turner wrote on X. Well, I hate to burst the bubble of Sixers fans who are rooting for Holiday's reunion, but there isn't a credible report out there that suggests Holiday is on the move. A buyout from Portland doesn't make much sense, considering they will compete for a playoff spot in 2027.
Should Evan Turner's mindset convince the Sixers to get him?
With all of that said: should the Sixers find a way to pursue Holiday via trade? In the past, the Sixers have been linked to Holiday on numerous occasions. The 36-year-old always ended up somewhere different. Since leaving Philadelphia in 2013, Holiday has transitioned to a two-time All-Star and a two-time NBA champion.
And as the Sixers' star Joel Embiid watched the Boston Celtics work on winning a title in 2024, the star center wrote, "Did the Bucks give them a championship?" which many interpreted as Holiday being the difference-maker, who helped Boston win it all. That's Embiid's way of saying he's an X-factor.
Connecting all of those dots, it makes me think that the Sixers would probably love to have a player like Jrue Holiday in the lineup, backing up Tyrese Maxey. However, they would have to match a $34.8 million salary just to get him. That's where reality settles in.
The Sixers can't afford it
The 76ers are a top-heavy team and don't possess any tradeable contracts. When you get past Tyrese Maxey's $40.0 million salary, VJ Edgecombe is next in line at $11.6 million. Dean Wade ($9.0 million) and Anfernee Simons ($6.0 million) are the others before it gets into minimum territory. There would have to be too many moving parts in order to make it happen.
In a perfect world, Holiday asks out of Portland and gets waived before following in Kentavious Caldwell-Pope's footsteps and becoming the eventual 15th addition to the Sixers' roster at a minimum cost, but that doesn't seem to be in the cards out in Portland at this time.
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