Could a trade be reached between the Philadelphia 76ers and the LA Clippers that involves Ben Simmons heading out west?

Philadelphia 76ers all-star Ben Simmons’ name is anticipated to be involved in trade talks this off season due to his poor play in the playoffs. After failing to improve his offensive game specifically shooting over the past few years, the process for the Sixers might just be broken soon. If the Sixers want to compete against contenders, they have to upgrade their roster. 

Meanwhile, Los Angeles had their best season in franchise history this year. They had arguably the deepest roster in the league but they ended up unlucky health-wise deep into the playoffs. They have a couple of contracts to work on this off season but of course, every contender will always find a way to improve their team.

That said, the Sixers and Clippers could find a way to make a transaction that involves Simmons. Simmons could fit in the Clippers because of his playmaking, defense and ability to get to the rim. The Clippers were one of the best three point shooting teams in the league this season and surrounding Simmons with this current Clipper roster could work. 

But that would mean having to give up the assets the Clippers currently have. It also means that the Sixers must accept the package that LA has to offer, which will most likely be without two of their best players Kawhi Leonard (if he resigns) and Paul George. Here’s what those trade packages may look like: 

First offer: 

Clippers, Ben Simmons

LA offer: Marcus Morris Sr., Patrick Beverely, Luke Kennard and Terrence Mann

Sixers offer: Ben Simmons 

Not saying this is ideal but here’s one package that works. The Clippers give up Morris, Beverely, Kennard and Mann in exchange for Simmons. Yes, that four role players from the Clippers roster but that’s at least what the Sixers will be expecting if they give up their three time all-star. If Leonard does resign with the Clippers, this could mean a George-Leonard-Simmons trio that actually isn’t a bad fit for the team.

The Clippers will have to retool their role players if this indeed happens. 

Second offer: 

Clippers offer: Paul George and Rajon Rondo

Sixxers offer: Ben Simmons and Seth Curry

As mentioned above, there’s a small chance the Clippers trade George—who had a phenomenal post season especially with Leonard out. However, the Sixers will likely want an all star as an exchange for their own all-star and this is likely going to be what the Sixers want. It would be interesting to see the pairing of Joel Embiid and Paul Goerge as well as Leonard and Simmons along with the Clippers’ strong role players.

George probably means a lot more LA compared to Simmons now with the Sixers so this will be an ultimate shocker for Clippers fans if it happens indeed. Right now, the Clippers’ focus might not be to get another all-star like Simmons but rather to make sure Leonard stays in LA. They also have several contracts to negotiate with specifically Reggie Jackson, Nicholas Batum and DeMarcus Cousins. 

Both the Sixers and Clippers probably have different priorities on how they might approach their all-stars this off season but these two trade packages are likely going to be the most realistic ones (salary and cap space wise) for both teams.