The Philadelphia 76ers are getting ready for an important offseason where they will attempt to adjust their roster through free agency and possibly trade around Joel Embiid and Tyrese Maxey.
They are planning to keep Maxey, a first-time All-Star, on hold for a new long-term contract while they figure out their next big acquisition.
The Sixers may have to wait for a potentially great trade opportunity.
“I’ll tell you this, knowing Daryl Morey, he’ll inquire about [Kevin] Durant,” ESPN NBA insider Zach Lowe stated on the “The Lowe Post” podcast on May 2. “Vultures’ll circle Phoenix. He’ll be a vulture.”
Durant and the Suns suffered a first-round sweep in the playoffs by the Minnesota Timberwolves, casting doubt about their long-term outlook.
Phoenix has limited options to upgrade its roster.
They spent a lot of their draft capital in trades for Durant and Bradley Beal, and the new rules in the CBA severely restrict them from using methods previously common for luxury tax teams.
The Suns cannot aggregate outgoing contracts in a trade and cannot bring back more money than they send out, among other regulations.
This could be the opening for the Sixers to step in with a trade offer, just not this offseason.
A Proposed In-Season Trade Could Bring Suns’ Kevin Durant to the Sixers
Unless the Sixers want to renounce most if not all of their free agents to absorb Durant into cap space, this deal will have to wait. Durant is a 14-time All-Star and was the MVP in 2013-14. He is going into Year 3 of a four-year, $194.2 million contract.
He will count for $49.8 million against the salary cap.
Philly has just four players – Embiid and backup center Paul Reed as well as reserves Jeff Dowtin and Ricky Council IV – on the books for next season. They have a slew of cap holds for players that could be worked into a package to entice the Suns.
Sixers get:
– Kevin Durant
Suns get:
– Tobias Harris
– Kyle Lowry
– 2024 first-round pick
– 2026 first-round pick
Harris’ five-year, $180 million contract has been an albatross for the Sixers. But his $45.8 million cap hold suggests he could be an ideal trade candidate in a package like this.
He was a non-factor in the Sixers’ Game 6 loss to the New York Knicks. Harris averaged 9.0 points, 7.2 rebounds, and 1.5 assists in the series. But he had a 17.2/6.5/3.1 line in the regular season.
Harris’ campaign was a bounceback after his 14.7/5.7/2.2 line in 2022-23.
Adding Lowry ($3.3 million cap hold) would give the Suns a legitimate point guard with some veteran savvy and defensive chops.
The Sixers would have to agree to new deals with both players before free agency to make this work since rules under the league’s CBA also prevent the Suns from acquiring any player in a sign-and-trade as a second-apron luxury tax team.
That means they’d have to wait until late December to trade Harris and Lowry as in this scenario.
Both players would be on veteran extensions that make them ineligible to be traded until six months after they ink the deal. By then both teams could very likely have made other plans.
Suns Not Looking to Blow it Up
Financially, this deal would make sense if the Suns were looking to get out from under the thumb of the CBA. But owner Matt Ishbia suggested that this is not true, showing a readiness to continue with the same group next season.
Morey, a famously astute negotiator sharp bargainer, might need to directly appeal to Ishbia in order to make any progress.
That's why the Sixers’ draft picks are extremely important in the trade mentioned earlier.
This trade would be much easier to convince the Sixers to agree to compared to the Suns. Harris and Lowry may not match the value of Durant on the court, but they would bring balance to the Suns’ team while providing draft picks for other transactions.
