Los Angeles Lakers: Three trade scenarios involving 4th overall pick
Lonzo Ball and pick 4 to 76ers, Ben Simmons and two unprotected first round picks from the Lakers to Pelicans, Anthony Davis to the Lakers.
The aim for the Lakers should be to not throw all of their assets at New Orleans for Anthony Davis. While that is easier said than done, I think it can be pulled off if the right trade partner is brought to the table.
The 76ers experiment with four stars hasn’t worked. Blame can be put on an out of shape and often injured Joel Embiid, but you can’t dismiss his effort on the floor. You can’t blame Jimmy Butler, who led the team throughout the playoffs and was their leader. Tobias Harris is partly at fault as he simply wasn’t ready for playoff basketball, but the real blame lies with Ben Simmons.
Touted as one of the best young players in the league, Simmons was virtually anonymous at times during games in the playoffs. His inability to shoot hurt the 76ers in a major way and made them a bit more one dimensional.
It is clear that Philadelphia is Embiids city, with Ben Simmons due for a contract extension now in the near future, it might be time for the 76ers to move on from Ben Simmons.
Don’t get me wrong, Simmons is still a blue-chip prospect. If he solves the shooting woes he has the potential to be an All-NBA player, but until then he is still a work in progress. With Zion Williamson now looking certain to be going to New Orleans, the Pelicans could add another top prospect by getting Simmons in a trade.
This deal would involve a three-team trade. Lonzo Ball and the 4th overall pick to the 76ers, Ben Simmons and two unprotected first round picks from the Lakers to the New Orleans Pelicans and Anthony Davis to the Lakers.
The drawback for the Lakers with this trade is they virtually eliminate themselves from landing a third star as this trade could only be made around July 1st.
If the Lakers wanted to add a third star they could do that with Brandon Ingram, Kyle Kuzma and Josh Hart still available.
With this trade, the 76ers won’t have to offer Simmons the max. They will have two years with Lonzo and four-plus years with the 4th overall draft pick. It would also allow them to offer Harris and Butler close to the max each.
New Orleans get a blue-chip prospect in Simmons back who has All-NBA potential and who they could have under contract for five-plus years if they extend him. They free up around 20m in cap space and could easily reach a max contract slot if they traded or released a few players.