Ben Simmons and the Philadelphia 76ers remain engaged in a nasty war that started at the end of last season.
After his team’s frustrating expulsion from the second round of the Eastern Conference playoffs, Simmons was thrown under the bus by teammate Joel Embiid and head coach Doc Rivers for being scared to shoot.
Simmons demanded a trade and pledged to not play any more games for the Sixers. Because of Simmons’ refusal to suit up, Philly stopped paying him and started fining him. This has led to an inevitable result. In the meantime, the Sixers have a high price for Simmons that teams are not willing to meet.
Fortunately, the Oklahoma City Thunder may have a solution to everyone’s problems. According to NBA insider Dave Early, Philly is eyeing OKC as a destination for Simmons.
Although the prospect of the Thunder trading away Shai Gilgeous-Alexander seems odd, what with them just giving him a pretty hefty new deal, it also wouldn’t be above Sam Presti to giving away the present for the future. It’s not like OKC is going to be competing for a title any time soon, and Gilgeous-Alexander has proved to be a bit injury-prone throughout his career.
This may be the perfect sell-high situation.
Simmons was also mentioned in an analyst's three-team trade scenario involving the Los Angeles Lakers and Sacramento Kings. That deal would also make a lot of sense, as it’s a win-win-win for all parties.
At this point, Simmons getting dealt feels like an inevitability. It’s not a matter of if, just when.
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