5 NBA Contenders That MUST Make A Trade Before The Deadline
3. Philadelphia 76ers
Consensus among esteemed NBA pundits have the 76ers pegged for a deep playoff run this season. In Ben Simmons and Joel Embiid the 76ers possess two stars, each of whom have the potential to be cornerstones of the league, making their struggles all the more puzzling.
Making some stellar acquisitions in the summer the 76ers added Al Horford - thus weakening rivals Boston in the process - and staunch wing defender and scorer, Josh Richardson. Rounding out the roster with complimentary pieces such as defending savant Matisse Thybulle, Jonah Bolden and Zaire Smith, among others, the belief was that Philadelphia would be the franchise who could assert themselves and become a conference challenger alongside Milwaukee. While this may still come to fruition, the 76ers have a number of glaring concerns to address.
At present they find themselves among the chasing pack, sitting at number 6 in the seedings, and having to compete without Joel Embiid for prolonged stretches. Ben Simmons has shown no willingness to improve his long range shooting - attempting only 3 in over 40 games at his stage - and even without Embiid in the lineup, Coach Brett Brown appears to lack the desire to include Al Horford in the offense, despite his ever-impressive efficiency and 4th quarter dependency.
Philadelphia remains firmly among the top 4 in defensive and offensive efficiency, but have an alarming question mark regarding their ability to make the long range shot consistently. Ben Simmons and Joel Embiid are both among the league elite regarding attempts within 15 feet, but with both on the court they struggle to exploit this advantage.
One way to aid this would be to pursue a name like Gary Harris from Denver. Harris would require a number of picks and perhaps a Josh Richardson, but the Denver guard is in need of a new home and Josh Richardson would significantly improve Denver’s defense without compromising on having someone who can create their own scoring opportunities.
If the 76ers truly want to achieve playoff success, adding more 3pt shooting to compliment their 2 superstars is paramount, otherwise we could be witnessing the birth of the issues which lead to their eventual divorce.