Insider sheds light on the 76ers' strategy at the trade deadline

With optimism surrounding reigning MVP Joel Embiid's health, the Philadelphia 76ers are expected to be active ahead of Thursday's trade deadline in preparation for a playoff run.

Philadelphia (30-19) announced that Embiid underwent a procedure to repair a meniscus injury in his left knee on Tuesday and that the 29-year-old would be re-evaluated in four weeks. Since the 76ers anticipate Embiid returning before the end of the regular season, the team will operate as buyers at the deadline, and ESPN's Brian Windhorst shared his thoughts on how he believes the process will unfold.

During the latest episode of the "Brian Windhorst & The Hoop Collective" podcast, Windhorst predicts Philadelphia will "make one to three trades" ahead of the trade deadline. The NBA insider believes the Sixers will pursue players whose contracts can provide them with financial flexibility during the offseason.

"[The 76ers] are now operating in talks like [Embiid is] going to come back and hopefully before the playoffs," Windhorst said. "So I would expect Philly to make one to three trades before Thursday afternoon."

"And I would also expect them to try — I'm not saying they're going to accomplish this — I would expect them to try to acquire players that either have expiring contracts or that have next year's salaries that are not fully guaranteed or that can easily be offloaded," Windhorst continued. 

While Thursday's deadline isn't shaping up to be as chaotic as seasons past, Philadelphia should have several available candidates to choose from to fulfill its goal.

Indiana Pacers guard Buddy Hield and Detroit Pistons forward Bojan Bogdanovic are two players the Sixers are known to be targeting, according to Yahoo Sports' Jake Fischer. Not only would either option provide much-needed shooting for a team averaging the fourth-fewest three-pointers per game (11.4), but they would meet the criteria that Windhorst believes Philadelphia is striving for.

Hield, who averages 12 points per game on 38.4% shooting from beyond the arc, is an impending free agent, whereas Bogdanovic (20.2 ppg) has his $19.03M salary for next season partially guaranteed. 

Additionally, Windhorst's ESPN colleague Adrian Wojnarowski reported during a recent appearance on "NBA Today" that Philadelphia could acquire a backup center to provide depth while Embiid is sidelined. Wojnarowski noted that Jazz big man Kelly Olynyk could be a potential target in addition to Bulls center Andre Drummond, a former Sixer. 

Despite the optimism surrounding Embiid's recovery, adding another center before Thursday's deadline would be wise on several fronts. Paul Reed has shined at times serving as Embiid's replacement, but Philadelphia has been underwhelming at crashing the glass this season, averaging the 12th-fewest rebounds per game (43.1). Not to mention there's always the possibility that Embiid suffers a setback while rehabbing or isn't at full strength come playoff time. 

Nonetheless, with Philadelphia sitting in fifth place of a crowded Eastern Conference, president of basketball operations Daryl Morey faces an uphill battle to keep his injury-riddled team out of the play-in tournament. 

The NBA trade deadline is on Thursday at 3 p.m. EST.