Charles Barkley Urges Sixers to Trade Ben Simmons for Joel Embiid's Sake

The Ben Simmons saga started back in the summer after the Philadelphia 76ers failed to get past the second round of the 2021 NBA Playoffs. When Simmons and his camp officially requested a trade, it seemed there would only be a matter of time before the three-time All-Star gets moved.

On the night of the 2021 NBA Draft, many assumed the Sixers could make the anticipated blockbuster trade involving Simmons, but it never happened. Months went by, and training camp approached without a deal close to getting done.

At a point, the Sixers attempted to convince Simmons to return. The star guard declined and held out from training camp and the preseason. While Simmons is back with the team technically, he hasn't participated in a matchup 43 games into the year.

With the deadline less than a month away, trade rumors have been heating up once again. While some remain optimistic the situation will have closure in February, the reality is the Sixers aren't budging on their asking price. Therefore, they aren't close to getting anything done. 

If the trade deadline comes and goes without the Sixers moving on from Simmons, the organization will hope he accepts the reality of the situation and return to the team. However, Ramona Shelburne of ESPN reports that likely won't be the case.

Charles Barkley Urges Philly to Move On

Sixers legend Charles Barkley is never one to shy away from his opinion -- especially when it comes to today's players. While Barkley's said in the past that everybody is at fault in the Simmons saga, the Hall of Famer believes that the Sixers need to simply move on for the sake of their star center, Joel Embiid.

"He's never going to play another game in Philly," Barkley told TMZ this week. "The fans won't forgive him. They have to make a trade. You have to move on from a bad relationship. They're not using him, and Joel Embiid has been playing great this year, so they're wasting his talents."

While Embiid is on board with the Sixers front office's thinking, Philadelphia's patience might not do him any favors if they don't strike a trade this year and then fail to land a star next season. A lot can change in the coming weeks, and Barkley thinks the 76ers would be better off making a deal sooner than later.

Justin Grasso covers the Philadelphia 76ers for Sports Illustrated. You can follow him for live updates on Twitter: @JGrasso_.