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The Philadelphia 76ers have an awkward roster on paper as they have tried to buck the current trend in the NBA and go big rather than go small. That plan worked on the defensive end as the Sixers were terrific at that end at times, but the offense was a struggle.
The team has two young stars in Ben Simmons and Joel Embiid, but they do not have enough around them to be able to operate on the offensive end. They need to have shooters around them in order to have the proper space and they did not receive it in 2019-20.
So, general manager Elton Brand has some decisions to make. Does he try and break up Simmons and Embiid to see what he can get for one of his young stars or does he try and bring in more shooters by moving Al Horford or Tobias Harris?
Bleacher Report has come up with a trade that goes the first route as they have come up with a deal that would send Simmons and the 21st pick in the 2020 draft to the Portland Trail Blazers for Damian Lillard.
B/R on the deal:
Portland did make a run to the Western Conference Finals in 2019, but it has otherwise been knocked out in the first round three times in the last four years. At some point, franchises must ask themselves if it’s worth it to keep running back the same core. Lillard turned 30 in July, and his backcourt mate, CJ McCollum, turned 29 in September. The Blazers might be ready to call it quits with this core.
If that’s the case, the Sixers should recognize opportunity’s knock and add a running mate who’s a much more natural on-court fit for Joel Embiid. Lillard ranked in the 87th percentile on isolations, while Embiid was in the 91st percentile for post-ups. Having them in the same half-court attack doesn’t sound fair, especially when each can spread the floor for the other.
Lillard would be absolutely what the team needs as a guy who can score in every way possible as he can shoot it from deep, he can get to the basket and finish, and he can get to the foul line. On top of that, he is a guy who can close the game out as the Sixers have been missing that since a certain someone left for the Miami Heat.
On the flip side, it really is tough to justify any Simmons or Embiid deals. They are both still so young, they have accomplished so much, and the scary part is they can both get better. Obviously, Simmons needs a jump shot, but to just give up on him and move on would be a mistake. He does so many things on the floor at an elite level and once he does break out that jump shot, the league will be in trouble. [lawrence-related id=37413]