76ers not interested in John Collins, others in a Ben Simmons trade
Yesterday, reports surfaced about a potential 76ers-Hawks trade that would send John Collins to Philadelphia in exchange for Ben Simmons. However, just like every other deal, the 76ers are not interested in Collins for Benjamin Simmons.
According to ESPN’s Adrian Wojnarowski, players like Collins, Domantas Sabonis, and Harrison Barnes aren’t moving the needle for Philadelphia in a Simmons trade, nor should they be.
The Pacers have long been interested in Simmons, but the Sixers have shot down all their offers for months, so no interest in Sabonis isn’t surprising. The same goes for Collins or Barnes unless they included other players from their teams like Cameron Reddish or Tyrese Haliburton.
Los Angeles Lakers
Another team that has recently been taken out of the running is the Los Angeles Lakers. The Lakers have struggled severely to start the season and have looked to trade underwhelming Russell Westbrook and his contract elsewhere. Westbrook is nowhere near the player he used to be and is on an albatross of a contract. Russ has two years remaining on his deal at roughly $45 million per year.
According to Sam Amick of The Athletic, the 76ers have zero interest in acquiring the former MVP. You could easily make the case that the 76ers are better without having Westbrick on this roster and would hurt Embiid’s play-style.
“It’s safe to say [Daryl] Morey has no interest in executing a bad deal because of pressure ever again. As an aside, sources say that’s also the reason the Sixers have zero interest in the prospect of swapping Simmons for Westbrook now and alleviating the Lakers’ fit concerns with their superstar trio.”
At this point, Daryl Morey and the 76ers need to keep doing what they have been doing. Just hold out until an All-Star becomes available. Rumors have swirled recently that this standoff could linger through the 2022 Draft, so it’s doubtful a trade is on the horizon.
Oh and in case you were wondering, we’re now back to this point of Ben Simmons updates:
Give me a fucking break, Woj.
Mandatory Credit: NBC Sports
