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The Sixers Will or Won’t Trade the #3 Pick, Depending Whether You’re National or Local Media
By Kyle Pagan
Published:
Rumors out of the NBA Combine are that the Sixers are reportedly open to trading the #3 pick for a star player, according to Jonathan Givony at ESPN.com:
Some teams expect the Sixers to be active in trade conversations, with names such as Kevin Durant (Phoenix) and Lauri Markkanen (Utah) as potential targets in packages that could include Paul George and the No. 3 pick. Sixers president of basketball operations Daryl Morey has made a career of being active and aggressive on the trade front, but historically, it’s rare to see a top-three pick being traded.
Adding a young, talented prospect could be appealing as a reset to the team’s timeline, offering long-term hope among Joel Embiid’s injury concerns and George’s significant contract, which might not age well.
I don’t know how much a 36 year old Kevin Durant, who just played 62 games, really excites Sixers fan when you’re already worried about having enough bodies to make a playoff run. It feels like trading a haul for a guy making $54 million in the last season of his deal isn’t the Hail Mary you’d hope for in Philadelphia. Lauri Markkanen, conversely, is intriguing and he still has four years left on his deal. Is that the piece that puts you over the top? Who knows. But it would feel like if the Sixers don’t have enough trade pieces for Giannis then Markkanen could be the most attractive trade piece.
Multiple Sixers reporters, on the other hand, are saying the intel they’re hearing is that the Sixers ARE NOT interested in trading #3 for a star:
The old he said/she said. Who knows who is telling the truth, especially during NBA Draft season when there is always a smoke screen. Are those public comments about adding a dynamic young player real or not? I think what the Sixers do varies with what Daryl Morey was told at his end of the year meeting. You have to think this front office is on a short leash. That would just be the betting favorite at any sportsbook. Plenty were shocked both him and Nick Nurse were coming back. You’d think he wants to show he can win ASAP to save his ass and wonder if there is a player at #3 that can help do that. If he doesn’t think there is, then of course he’s going to shop the pick around. If Josh Harris, on the other hand, doesn’t even really care about the Sixers at the moment because he has a shiny new toy in D.C., then maybe Daryl has a longer leash than we think. That, I’d speculate, would lead to the alternative and adding a young player to the core and the future where you can build around would be the most ideal while also giving you the most outs depending on Joel Embiid’s health.
I still think Bob Myers is lurking somewhere in the shadows. We know he has Harris’ ear since he’s been an advisor with the Commies. Something tells me if he wanted anything to do with this current Sixers team Harris would’ve obliged. Maybe he’s just waiting in the wings to see how things play out and how the Sixers look heading into 2026-27 season. By then he’ll have to be tired of Stephen A. Smith and Brian Windhorst on NBA Countdown.
Kyle writes blog posts and does Man on the Street-style videos all around Philadelphia. He graduated from Temple University (a basketball school) in 2015. contact: k.pagan@sportradar.com