The Philadelphia 76ers and the Sacramento Kings have been rumored to be potential trade partners for disgruntled Sixers star Ben Simmons for quite some time now. The Sixers and the Kings have even had some early discussions on a possible Simmons deal and have worked some type of frame for how it would look.
The Kings haven’t made a playoff appearance since 2006 so acquiring Simmons would be a move that would push them in the right direction. However, they have been flip-flopping on who they would give up to acquire him.
At first, they made De’Aaron Fox and Tyrese Haliburton completely unavailable, but after some time, they put Fox on the table to try and entice the Sixers to grab Simmons. It would seem that Sacramento would have a change of heart in that area.
Now, per Shams Charania of The Athletic and The Stadium, the Kings are not making Fox available in any trades:
The Sacramento Kings organization has a current mindset: They are not trading guard De’Aaron Fox, sources tell The Athletic.
The Kings remain active in trade conversations, informing teams in the marketplace that they want to build around Fox and second-year guard Tyrese Haliburton, sources said. The Kings have informed Fox and his representation, agent Chris Gaston of Family First Sports, that they do not want to trade him and want to center the team around him and Haliburton.
The Athletic has previously reported that the Kings are among the suitors for Sixers star Ben Simmons.
The Sixers will have to continue to scour the land a bit and see what they can grab for Simmons. With Fox seemingly off the table, it does seem that Philadelphia will now move on with their offseason plans to keep an eye on James Harden in a possible sign-and-trade deal.
This post originally appeared on Sixers Wire! Follow us on Facebook!
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