Trade Ben Simmons poll

Just curious: what team whose star demanded a trade actually got a star in return?
Did the Rockets get a star for Harden?
Did the Pelicans get a star for KD?
Maybe you can claim that OKC got a star for Paul George, but that's stretching it - SGA was just promising.
Am I missing an example?

 

It's unprecedented for two reasons:

1. Simmons has 4 yrs left on his deal.
2. Philly is still trying to contend.

Star for star deals are so rare in the NBA. Westbrook for Paul was probably the most recent one.

 

Would anyone notice an implosion in Washington?

 

For the first point: George had years left on his deal. (Also: why is having years left on your deal supposed to matter? Because you control the player for that length of time? How'd that work for the Sixers?)
For the second: why the fuck should that matter to the other team? "Oh, I wasn't going to offer you a star but you say you're trying to contend? Well here, have Damian Lillard then!"

 

It doesn't, that's why Morey's waiting game makes little sense to me. There are absolutely no avenues for Simmons to actually increase his value right now.

 

Just curious, what star demanded a trade who wasn't the best player on their team?

 

Would you consider KAT better than Jimmy?

Westbrook demanded out of Houston before Harden was traded.

But ya, neither resulted in star returns in the trades.

 

If Morey loses games over this he's a fool. The fact is that the longer this plays out the more teams are going to feel that they have the leverage over the Sixers. So if a bigger star becomes available they'll either ask for Simmons and a ton more or just make a trade with another team. Morey has put himself in a bad position and it just gets worse from here.

 

It always fascinates me when a player demands a trade, then does nothing to actually facilitate a deal happening. Working together to get a deal done seems like simple common sense.

 

It's been reported that Rich Paul has tried to facilitate deals since the initial request in June, but Morey's demands have been so exorbitant that teams aren't cooperating. It was in an Athletic article I believe-- gotta dig that out.

 

that assumes that Morey would have had reasonable trade demands if Simmons was more "cooperative". Do you really believe Morey would have reacted in Simmons favor if it wasn't so rancorous?

maybe Morey should have told Doc Rivers and Embiid to shut the fuck up. They are the ones that burned the bridges, followed by the insane Philly fans

 

Just a few examples of deals Morey proposed this summer:
- Tatum (repeatedly mentioned by Bill Simmons) from Boston.
- Wiggins, Wiseman, 7th pick, 14th pick, and 2 future firsts from GS.
- Lowry, Van Vleet, Anunoby AND the 4th pick from Toronto.
- DeJounte Murray, 4 future firsts, and 3 pick swaps from SA
- "A top 5-10 player"
- Seeking a "James Harden-esque" return.
- "the best player" on each team.

- Dame (presumably)

And here's the other thing. He very obviously leaks these offers and negotiates through the media. I can see the rest of the league shunning him, tbh.

 

As others have noted, teams trading a star generally only do it because that star can force the issue through free agency so the team is left with little choice. At that point, they're heading into a rebuild.

I never said that Morey will get an actual star for Simmons, but he has to maximize his return. Pulling the trigger early just to net CJ McCollum hardly seems like a move that he's crazy not to make. Having four years left on Simmons' deal absolutely gives him time to wait on making a deal, because Simmons can't just leave on his own.

Simmons not playing doesn't really hurt his trade value--everyone knows his game, and it's less chance of him getting injured in the meantime so unless the 76ers are desperate for early season wins, I don't think his hold-out is actually that big a deal for them. The idea that it harms their leverage is silly--he was already obviously being traded and Morey, by not quickly trading him, is proving he's willing to deal with the "discomfort" of a player holding out. Their leverage comes from trying to prove that they won't be held up by low-bid offers designed to take advantage of a desperate team. They can only do that by hanging onto Simmons while they continue waiting and negotiating.

 

Four ways that I think this hold-out can reduce his value if extended:

1. I think you underestimate how ugly Rich Paul can make this situation both with regards to future clients and leaks to the media about internal troubles in Philly.
2. Players getting constantly pestered into answering questions about Simmons.
3. Losing more in a tightly contested EC playoff race this year where they have a shot at dropping from #1 to a play-in team.
4. Their fans ruining public perception even further.

 

Just some examples recently:

 

I think (1) is a really good point I hadn't fully considered. I don't think (4) matters even a tiny bit. NBA front offices aren't going to make player evaluations based on what angry Philadelphia fans are chanting or tweeting. (2) could be an issue, I'm undecided. (3) will definitely matter if this goes on all season--I think that's probably unsustainable. But I think Morey can at least extend this through December.

 

My read on this is that extending through at least December is an inevitability. There has hardly been any traction from legitimate rumors, and this is from a front office that does almost all their business publicly. I posted earlier that dragging this further will do nothing to INCREASE his value-- and I'll stick by that.

I'll also stick by my prediction of Portland having a better record than Philly (minus Ben) by Christmas, so hopes of a miracle Dame trade to Philly are far-fetched.

 

I agree with that. I don't think Morey hopes that Simmons' value, in an absolute sense, increases. I think he's hoping some teams (doesn't necessarily have to be Portland, even if that's his dream) get desperate to shake things up or decide that they're one player away and see Simmons as "their Draymond Green" (to be clear: I actually think Simmons and Green are very different players, but I think you can talk yourself into seeing them as doing similar things for a team) and are willing to give up a really good young player and some picks.

Personally, I kind of think Morey is screwed, but he probably doesn't have any great options so he might as well play it out as far as he can.

 

It is also possible that since Simmons is hated so much in Philly at the moment, Morey might think it is a good time to lower his demands and not lose face.
I am sure he can spin it in his favor.

 

Plus 1 on the rich paul thing. Nobody in the media that i know of is talking about this. Klutch has clout and players like klutch