With the NBA trade deadline just over two weeks away, rival teams interested in three-time All-Star Ben Simmons believe Philadelphia 76ers President of Basketball Operations Daryl Morey has his sights set on a bigger target in the summertime: Brooklyn Nets star James Harden.
The 76ers continue to engage in trade talks around Simmons, who requested a trade and informed the franchise in October that he is not mentally ready to play again for the franchise and needs professional help for his mental health. But multiple sources, including people with direct knowledge of the team’s thinking and also from rival teams involved on the Simmons front, tell The Athletic that the 76ers are believed to prefer to wait in order to pursue Harden or another superstar in the offseason and thus want to save Simmons for that potential sign-and-trade rather than take what’s available on the current market.
Unless Philadelphia is blown away at the deadline by a team that significantly improves its current best offer, in other words, the standstill between Simmons and the Sixers will continue past the deadline. There’s belief that the offers currently available would be there in the offseason too, but what may not be, if a Simmons deal is completed now, is a shot at a star like Harden. Simmons entered this season with four years and $147 million remaining on his maximum contract.
