The Philadelphia 76ers are title contenders in the Eastern Conference and they made a deal on Thursday in an effort to better position themselves to make the title run they believe they can make.
They acquired George Hill from the Oklahoma City Thunder in a three-team deal. They sent Tony Bradley and two second-round picks to the Thunder and sent Vincent Poirier, Terrance Ferguson and a second-round pick to the New York Knicks.
Bradley was starting at center for the Sixers in the absence of Joel Embiid who is out with a bone bruise, and he was playing well. Bradley was an underrated part of the team being 5-1 since the big fella went down and veteran Dwight Howard was sad to see Bradley leave.
“It’s very sad to hear about him leaving our team,” said Howard. “I’ve seen from the beginning of the season to now, his energy and his effort has changed, and he’s been playing out of his mind the last couple of games and I’m so proud of him. He has an opportunity to go to Oklahoma City and play big minutes, and I think it’s gonna be a blessing in disguise for him. Sad that he’s leaving our team, but I’m happy for him as a player because he gets that opportunity that he needs, and I hope he continues to work hard and not forget where you came from in the work, and he’s going to be great.”
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The Thunder are one of the younger teams in the league, but they play hard and they will offer an opportunity for Bradley to make an impact. Once Embiid returned, he was going to go back to being the third-string center behind Howard and Embiid, so there were limited opportunities for him.
As for Hill, the veteran has had success in this league but not reached the top. He has been to both the Eastern Conference Finals and the NBA Finals, but not won the title. This is a new opportunity for him to do so.
“I think he will provide a lot of defensive pressure at the guard position,” said Howard. “Also, another savvy veteran who’s played for a while who understands the game, and he’s playing for one reason that’s to win a championship. I’m looking forward to having him on our team. Looking forward to him making a great impact here in Philadelphia. I can’t wait.”
The Sixers will take on the Los Angeles Lakers on Thursday to continue their road trip and they will have to decide who starts at the center position now. Normally, it would be Bradley because coach Doc Rivers likes to keep Howard with the second unit. Now he will have to decide on either Howard or maybe rookie Paul Reed.
This post originally appeared on Sixers Wire! Follow us on Facebook!
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