As the Philadelphia 76ers move forward with their season, they have gotten some good developmental growth out of young players such as Tyrese Maxey and Matisse Thybulle. The two of them have become fixtures in what the Sixers want to do and they look like long-term pieces.
That is why trade talks that include the disgruntled Ben Simmons become a bit tricky. The Sixers might have to include a young player or two in order to make a Simmons deal work, but Philadelphia has already marked Thybulle as close to untouchable as one can get.
David Aldridge and Josh Robbins of The Athletic are reporting that now Maxey will not be included in Simmons deals either. Even if they were to acquire a star such as Bradley Beal of the Washington Wizards.
Per Aldridge and Robbins:
Philadelphia has made no secret that Beal is on its short list of players for whom it would trade disgruntled guard Ben Simmons, who has sat out all season. But the 76ers won’t include an additional piece, such as exciting young guard Tyrese Maxey, along with Simmons in a potential trade for Beal, per league sources. Philly has similarly held firm that it won’t put third-year forward Matisse Thybulle, a terrific wing defender, in a Simmons package.
Maxey has taken leaps and bounds forward as a second-year player averaging 16.8 points and 4.7 assists while shooting 40.1% from deep. The growth that he has shown could make things easier for Philadelphia. While the obvious focus is Brooklyn Nets star James Harden, the Sixers can feel confident putting him in a backcourt next to Maxey.
With Simmons gone, the Sixers have had to focus more on Thybulle in terms of his elite defense and he has answered the call. While he is still a poor 3-point shooter, one can see the progress with him on the offensive end in terms of being a cutter off the ball. This will all be interesting to watch fold out as the Sixers move forward.
This post originally appeared on Sixers Wire! Follow us on Facebook!
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