Ben Simmons may have played his way out of The City of Brotherly Love. The Philadelphia 76ers star point guard disappeared on offense during the club’s second-round defeat to the underdog Atlanta Hawks. Astonishingly, Simmons did not take a single fourth-quarter shot in five of the seven games in the series.

It was clear Simmons shied away from shots to avoid getting fouled and being sent to the free-throw line, where he struggled mightily. Against Atlanta, Simmons hit just 15-of-45 (33.3%) attempts from free-throw line, an unthinkably bad mark for a professional basketball player He was an end-of-game liability for the top-seeded Sixers. Throughout the playoffs, he shot a horrific 34.2% from the foul line.

The Sixers failed to get it done in the playoffs once again, and Simmons played a major role in their demise. Looking to adjust their roster to get over the hump, they may opt to trade Simmons. Philly needs to find a point guard who can shoot from the outside. Specially, they will target a floor general who can complement the talents of superstar center Joel Embiid.

Who can offer a trade package for Simmons? Enter the Oklahoma City Thunder, a team flushed with future first-round picks and just acquired Kemba Walker in a blockbuster trade with the Boston Celtics. Oklahoma City may have just landed Walker but could opt to flip him in another deal. Let’s break down a Ben Simmons-centered trade that benefits both the Sixers and Thunder.

Proposed Trade Details

Thunder acquire: Ben Simmons

Sixers acquire: Kemba Walker, Kenrich Williams, 2022 Thunder first-round pick, 2024 Thunder first-round pick

Why Thunder make trade

Despite Ben Simmons’ postseason debacle, he does have value on the trade market. Simmons is, after all, a three-time All-Star who has been named to the NBA’s All-Defensive Team in each of the past two seasons.

The biggest issue is Simmons’ talents do not mesh with Embiid’s. While Simmons excels at getting to the rim, he is one of the league’s worst outside shooters. His inability to space the floor negatively impacts Embiid, who is at best with his back to the basket in the post. Opposing teams often double-team Embiid and leave Simmons wide open, and the latter is unable to make the defenses pay.

Simmons could use a change of scenery after this latest postseason failure, and the young Thunder might be an ideal club. He is owed roughly $147 million over the next four seasons. While that is a hefty contract, the Thunder could be enticed to trade for him because he will be under team control—his contract runs through 2025—for the foreseeable future. Given that the team is far from competing for a championship, it would rather acquire a player of Simmons’ caliber with a long-term deal already in place.

The Thunder have a treasure trove of draft capital in the coming seasons. They can afford to dangle two picks in order to land an elite talent.

Simmons would join a Thunder team led by up-and-coming star Shai Gilgeous-Alexander. It has other enticing roster pieces, such as Lugentz Dort, Aleksej Pokusevski, Theo Maledon, Darius Bazley and Isaiah Roby.

Gilgeous-Alexander and Simmons would form a formidable backcourt duo. The addition of Simmons could vault the Thunder into playoff contention next year. Simmons will be enter his entering his age-25 season, while Gilgeous-Alexander will be only 23 next season, so the two youngsters have the opportunity to be teammates for a long time if things pan out.

Why Sixers make trade

For years, we have heard how Joel Embiid and Ben Simmons will struggle to coexist. The two downplayed the chatter throughout their tenure as teammates. However, Embiid may have grown tired of playing alongside Simmons, at least if his comments immediately after the Game 7 defeat to the Hawks are any indication:

“I mean, I’ll be honest. I thought the turning point was when we—I don’t know how to say it—but I thought the turning point was just we had an open shot and we made one free throw and we missed the other and then they came down and scored,” Embiid said after Game 7.

Embiid is referring to the play when Simmons passed up what looked like an easy layup/dunk. Simmons instead dished it to Matisse Thybulle, who was hacked and sent to the foul line with the Sixers trailing 88-86. Thybulle went 1-for-2 on the ensuing free throws, unable to tie the score. That play was a microcosm of Simmons’ woeful series against the Hawks.

Looking for a shakeup at point guard, Kemba Walker could fit the bill for Philadelphia. Walker played the past two seasons for the Celtics and dealt with recurring knee issues. The 2020-21 campaign was a down year relative to expectations for Walker, but he did start the All-Star Game for the Eastern Conference the season prior.

Even in a year where he underperformed, Walker managed to produce per-game marks of 19.3 points, 4.9 assists and 4.0 rebounds. An excellent foul shooter, he hit 89.9% from the charity stripe.

Walker is capable of consistently hitting the 3-point shot. That alone would be a drastic change from Simmons. Walker has averaged at least three 3-pointers made per contest in each of the past three seasons. On the flip side, Simmons has made just five 3-pointers in 34 attempts throughout his entire career.

Shooting 3s off the dribble is a strength of Walker. The four-time All-Star hit 34.7% of his attempts for off-the-dribble treys last season, a solid rate. Walker's ability to drill shots from the outside would give Embiid more room to operate in the paint. A scoring trio of Embiid, Tobias Harris and Walker would be lethal.

The 31-year-old Walker would be a significant downgrade defensively from Simmons, an athletic sensation who shines on that end of the floor. However, the Sixers could lean on the defensive excellence of Embiid and the developing Matisse Thybulle. Starting small forward Danny Green is also an above-average defender, although he did have his share of struggles this season and is set to be a free agent. For that reason, it would be wise for the Sixers to also acquire Kenrich Williams from the Thunder.

Williams emerged as a legitimate 3-and-D threat for the Thunder this season and is on a cheap deal. In addition to shooting 44.4% on 3-pointers, he posted the best Defensive Box Plus/Minus on the Thunder (minimum 30 games played) in 2020-21.

Williams, 26, would add another strong defensive presence off the bench for Philly.

The combination of Walker and Williams—plus the all-important pair of first-round picks—makes this a gamble worth taking, even with Walker's injury questions. This trade scenario presents a short-term win for the title-hungry Sixers, and a long-term victory for the rebuilding Thunder.