Philadelphia is looking to trade Ben Simmons at the moment and it’s easy to see why. Simmons disappeared in the playoffs when they needed him the most and because of that, Philly had enough. Since their game six loss against Atlanta, multiple teams have inquired about the availability of Simmons. Philly could be looking to move him and maybe even Maxey in this trade scenario. Could OKC land Maxey?
OKC is said to be one of the teams interested in participating in this trade scenario. The possible trade could be a four-way trade between OKC, San Antonio, Philadelphia and Indiana. Each team receives a star in return but will the actual trades benefit their respective teams?
In this mock trade, Indiana is trading their star offensive-minded forward for another star defensive-forward. Sabonis had a major breakout year and averaged a career-high in points (20.0), assists (6.7) and steals (1.2). While Simmons made it further into the playoffs, it was Sabonis who had the better playoff performances. It wouldn’t make a whole lot of sense to trade one of the biggest rising stars in the league in Sabonis for Simmons who seems to struggle creating his own offense and perform on the bigger stage. Sabonis is a lesser defender and playmaker (although just by a slight margin) but he fits Indiana’s scheme more. Simmons would clearly help their defense but his refusal to shoot the basketball might create some problems within their offense.
Philadelphia is getting a pretty nice package in return. They receive a rising star in Gilgeous-Alexander, good role player in Lamb and another solid three and D guard in White. Gilgeous-Alexander will be the unquestioned number two role behind Embiid (unless Harris stays). Combine his offensive skill and improving play with Embiid’s skillset and this team will be very fun to watch. Lamb will be a solid bench player who spaces the floor and gives them a good slasher/shooter. White is a great defender who also has a very reliable three-point shot that they’ve been lacking at the one. He’s not the superior defender and playmaker that Simmons is but he’s still a very good pickup.
San Antonio receiving Sabonis in a trade would be huge for this franchise. If DeRozan were to leave or get traded, Sabonis would be handed the keys to this team. Coach Pop would have a lot of fun with his skillset as he has an improving playmaking skillset along with his superior offensive abilities. Add in the fact that they have a developing Keldon Johnson, Dejounte Murray and Devin Vassell and this team is looking pretty nice for the future. The Spurs did announce that Murray and White are both “gettable” in trade talks so this is something to pay attention to as the offseason kicks off.
Finally, the Thunder receiving a skilled prospect in Maxey and two more lottery picks. General manager Sam Presti probably has dreams about first round picks and obtaining two more lottery picks would only make him even happier. Maxey has proven that he deserves more playing time when he was playing insane minutes due to health and safety protocols earlier in the season. Against Denver, he played a career-high 43 minutes and put up 39 points, seven rebounds and six assists. Throughout the rest of the season, he played like an absolute stud when given the minutes. If OKC were to land him, he would be given a great deal of minutes due to his enormous upside.
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