Lakers Apparently Considering Ben Simmons Deal
As Shams Charania of The Athletic reports, the Philadelphia 76ers are exploring options for possible deals with multiple teams to get off the contract of embattled All-Defensive Team point guard Ben Simmons. Charania mentions two new big market names, the Los Angeles Lakers and New York Knicks, as being among the clubs intrigued by the concept of adding Simmons.
Charania notes that the Sixers front office, led by second-year team president Daryl Morey, is ramping up their attempts to figure out a way to trade the three-time All-Star point guard. The 6'11" 25-year-old's offensive limitations were on full display in the top-seeded Sixers' notorious Game 7 defeat to the fifth-seeded Atlanta Hawks during the second round of the 2021 Eastern Conference playoffs.
The LSU product was the runner-up in Defensive Player of the Year voting during the 2020-21 season, but has never developed a jump shot, and saw his free-throw shooting crater in the playoffs. He holds career regular season averages of 15.9 points, 8.1 rebounds, 7.7 assists, 1.7 steals and 0.7 blocks per game.
Simmons is in the second year of a massive five-season, $177.2 million contract extension with Philadelphia, and has been holding out from playing for the 15-12 Sixers, in the hopes of forcing a deal. This season, he is netting a bit over $33 million.
As Luke Adams of Hoops Rumors notes, the framework of any direct Lakers transaction would most likely involve sending out the $44.2 million contract of new point guard Russell Westbrook. A Long Beach native who played at UCLA in college, Westbrook's frustrating late-game decision-making, poor defense and broken jumper have at times limited his efficacy in LA. The switchable Simmons could at least help with the defensive component of that issue, and would presumably be more comfortable taking an off-ball role next to All-Star Lakers forward LeBron James.
If you'll recall, Simmons was a name floated in my column considering five potential Russell Westbrook trades following his disastrous first Lakers game. The framework of a straight-up deal would send the contracts of Simmons, Isaiah Joe and Jaden Springer to LA in exchange for Westbrook. At the time of the column, it felt like Simmons had most of the leverage in compelling Morey to make a deal. Now, with so many other teams potentially lining up to acquire his services (Charania mentioned that the Cleveland Cavaliers, Indiana Pacers, Sacramento Kings, Portland Trail Blazers, and Minnesota Timberwolves remain interested in trading for Simmons, too), it seems like Morey could at least extract some Lakers picks in the offing.
After trading Chris Paul for Westbrook while running the Houston Rockets' front office during the 2019-20 season, it would seem that Morey might be wary of making such a deal without getting a third team involved. The team did not make any forward momentum in its quest to win a title with All-Star guard James Harden, losing in five games to the eventual champion Lakers in the 2020 playoffs. During the offseason, Harden did his darnedest to force his way out of town, eventually getting sent by the Rockets to the Nets.
The 15-13 Los Angeles Lakers, once considered title contenders, have looked inconsistent and old during this young 2021-22 season. An influx of switchable athleticism and defensive excellence in the form of Simmons could help change LA's fortunes.
Here's our Doug McKain with a video breakdown of potential ways in which the Lakers could add Simmons:
