The Philadelphia 76ers have not been able to reach any form of decision regarding potential trades for the team's frustrated All-Star Ben Simmons. Recent reports have arisen concerning a possible trade between the Sixers and the Portland Trail Blazers, with the trade revolving around Ben Simmons and CJ McCollum. However, these rumors have been somewhat deflated by Philadelphia, as apparently the 76ers have little interest in McCollum. Kyle Neubeck of phillyvoice.com reports:
“A bit of important reporting we will try not to bury in a recap — a source familiar with the situation spoke to PhillyVoice on Monday evening and said the Sixers have had no recent discussions with Portland regarding a CJ McCollum trade, and a package centered around the Blazers' guard is not currently of interest to the Sixers.
The Sixers are expected to continue dialogue with teams across the league about potential opportunities as December 15th nears closer and more trade scenarios become available league-wide.”
These developments come in light of Blazers star Damian Lillard and his ongoing frustrations centered around his long-standing abdominal issue, administration changes, as well as the fact that the Blazers have been severely underperforming to start the season. On the topic of Lillard, the point guard has had somewhat of a slow start to the season, yet reports indicate that Dame remains to be one of the stars the Sixers are willing to trade Simmons for. Jake Fischer of Bleacher Report touches on this:
“On the surface, Olshey's firing would seemingly allow the two teams to return to the negotiating table. But ever since Simmons first levied his trade request to Philadelphia officials this summer, it's been difficult to foresee Daryl Morey's front office trading Simmons for McCollum, as the Sixers clearly intend to net an All-Star of equal or greater value in return. Lillard is among a handful of players at the very top of that list, not McCollum.”
The possibility of the Blazers trading away their central piece in Lillard for Ben Simmons is sketchy at best, yet any potential negotiations between the two teams may be at an impasse, given the Sixers' reported refusal of CJ McCollum.
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