The Philadelphia 76ers enter Thursday night’s NBA Draft with Ben Simmons still on the roster. Despite the fact that the team has reportedly had some conversations with other franchises and views a trade as inevitable, Simmons is still with the Sixers, as nothing has materialized ahead of one of the biggest nights of the NBA’s offseason.
An issue, reports have indicated, is that Philly wants a whole heck of a lot back in exchange for their All-Star forward. One team, per Zach Harper of The Athletic, learned this the hard way, as the Cleveland Cavaliers apparently tried to gauge the Sixers’ interest in a move for Simmons and were told they’d need to part with more or less everything they have.
One question outside of a likely Mobley pick is what else they might have in store for themselves. Rumors of Collin Sexton trades are swirling. Exploring better-balanced books in the future is happening. And even kicking around a potential Ben Simmons trade for Cleveland has been discussed, as it has with many teams. League sources said brief conversations between Cleveland and Philadelphia were explored, but an asking price of every young player the Cavs value plus multiple first-round picks in the future wasn’t something they’d consider.
It’s an interesting look into Philly’s (pun intended) process here, because while there was a perception that Simmons’ value cratered during the NBA playoffs, it appears that the Sixers are indeed confident in their ability to get back something really substantial for a 25-year-old All-Star on a long-term contract. Whether or not they’re able to do this, of course, remains to be seen, but Philly seems content to wait until they get something really substantial back before making a move.
