To begin, Philadelphia is not a true title contender. There’s no need to go all in when the behemoth Golden State Warriors still exist. However, their combination of youth and experience makes them still a formidable squad. Their team is built for future success, but as long as they’re smart about it, there’s no reason not to make a run at Golden State. They have the personnel and talent, not to mention the competitive drive of Joel Embiid and now Jimmy Butler. Butler’s arrival has opened the championship window wider, and the Sixers should capitalize.
To do so, however, the Sixers need to make some more changes. Losing Dario Saric and Robert Covington is a blow to spacing. The Sixers still have shooters in Landry Shamet and Mike Muscala on the bench, but it’s not enough. Much of their success last year had to do with their excellent spacing, which was lost when Marco Belinelli and Ersan Ilyasova left town.
To remedy this, we’re going to outline a few possible trade targets for the Sixers. Though Philadelphia could also benefit from more big man depth, shooting should be the objective. These three players should all be on the trade market, and any of them could greatly benefit the Sixers.
Kyle Korver
Every championship team needs a reliable marksman running around the perimeter stroking threes. Philadelphia already has JJ Redick. Why not add another one? Korver is only playing 15.3 minutes per game in Cleveland, sullenly sulking on a 1-11 team. He’s a career 43.1% shooter from three, and that mark should translate nicely to Philadelphia.
Although aging at 37, Korver should still be valued highly. He isn’t as bad on defense as the stereotype would suggest. The 6’7″ frame might make him slow, but Korver never was a speedy player anyways, and the size gives strength. Korver is also an avid charge-taker, making him a coach favorite anywhere.
Philadelphia shouldn’t have to give up the farm either to acquire Korver. Cleveland doesn’t use him anyways, and they have no reason to hold him hostage. There are also rumors circulating about locker room unrest in Cleveland anyway, so the Cavs might be happy to move Korver.
Courtney Lee
Lee’s been out this season because of a lingering neck injury, and the Knicks have no reason to rush him. They already have Allonzo Trier and Damyean Dotson, who’ve both shown potential. Mario Hezonja and Frank Ntilikina also play the same position, so Lee would only be stealing minutes. The Knicks should be actively trying to trade Lee, and there’s no better destination than Philadelphia.
He’s a career 38.9% shooter from three, and his defense would be a welcome addition to the team. Lee would be an ideal fit next to either Fultz or Simmons, which makes him valuable considering their lack of shooting. He’s also had experience playing with non-shooters, having spent years with the grit-and-grind Grizzlies. Lee would bring veteran leadership after 10 years in the league, which would greatly benefit the young Sixers.
The only roadblock in this deal is the salaries. Lee has two years left of a four-year $48 million deal, which complicates things. Philadelphia won’t be keen on taking on a multi-year deal of that size. There’s the possibility of two max contract slots this offseason, and Lee would ruin that. The Knicks would need to come up with some sort of stretch provision to make this deal work. A bit of creativity will be needed, and possibly a third team, but Lee would be a perfect fit once in Philadelphia.
Bradley Beal
As unlikely as this seems now, in a dozen or so more games, this is a phone call that might be made. The Wizards are 3-9 as of November 11, a disappointing start for the amount of talent on the team. Washington is suffering from a lack of cohesiveness and communication, as well as poor game planning. A few more losses will be enough to at least open the front office up to start looking at possible moves.
Although the Wizards would prefer to trade John Wall, a combination of his contract and playstyle will make finding a trade partner difficult. Beal is the more valuable player, given he’d earn $81 million over the next three years, and fits with nearly every NBA team. Philadelphia is no exception, and Beal would slide in perfectly at wing with Jimmy Butler.
Obviously, this is a scenario in which the Sixers would likely have to give up Fultz, but should this opportunity arise it’s worth discussing. The possibility of running a Simmons-Beal-Butler-Embiid lineup is the stuff of dreams and might even be enough for Philadelphia to beat Golden State.
Beal’s currently averaging 22.6 PPG on an excellent 47.3 FG% clip. His three-pointers are only going in on a 35.8% rate this season, but it’s mostly the effect of an early shooting slump Beal had. Beal’s a career 39.2% shooter from three and is a wizard (pun unintended) creating in the mid-range.
Bradley Beal probably won’t be coming to Philadelphia, but he’s a player the Sixers should push to acquire. Washington will probably stabilize itself over the next few weeks because they’re simply too talented to be this bad, but one can never tell. It won’t come easy for the Sixers, who’d have to give up Fultz and Redick as well to match salaries, but it’d be well worth it for a guy like Bradley Beal.
Sidenote: The Sixers would still be able to re-sign Jimmy Butler even if they did acquire Beal, as long as they renounced the rights to all free agents. Yes, this would completely gut them of depth, but we’ve seen top-heavy teams succeed before, particularly when they have as much talent as this. Philadelphia would need to sign a few ring-chasing veterans, but they’d still be looking good.
Conclusion
Philadelphia doesn’t need to make any of these moves to succeed, but any of them would help in their conquest of the East. Neither Boston or Toronto is going to be a pushover, and Milwaukee is looking better every day. The Indiana Pacers are also gathering steam, creating another dark horse contender. A trip to the NBA Finals is now as difficult as it was under LeBron James’ regime, with four or five legit candidates.
The Jimmy Butler trade has certainly shaken things up in the NBA. After a mediocre start to the season, Philadelphia has now officially entered the conversation as an Eastern contender. This won’t be the last move to be made, especially not in the East. Look out for even more trades on the horizon as a result, as the NBA teams begin stockpiling weapons for the playoffs.