Ben Simmons has yet to play this season. Given the latest news on the trade market, Sixers fans will likely have to deal with this situation for a bit longer. With the trade restriction on several players now lifted as of December 15th, many had hoped that a Ben Simmons trade would come to form. Unfortunately, that hasn’t been the case.
At this point, it seems that minimal discussions are going on about Simmons. However, per Marc Stein, much of that has to do with the league’s current state.
“I heard so little about Ben Simmons in Vegas. Just remarkably little. That just illustrates, to me, just what a secondary thing trade pursuits are at the moment whereas normally, I think in that kind of environement, even if there was nothing happening with Ben, just kind of Ben predictions would have been flying around the gym and you just really didn�t get much of that.”
Marc Stein
With the NBA in a bout with COVID-19 cases spreading across the league, most organizations have their focus set on keeping a 15-man squad available. As a result, trade discussions have appeared to have taken a backseat. Given the surrounding conditions around most teams now, that may be for the best. In the meantime, the 76ers will have to make do with what they have now.
Currently sitting at 16-16, Philadelphia holds the seventh seed in the Eastern Conference. Even without Ben Simmons, a healthy lineup should keep them competitive. That said, a trade could go a long way in ensuring the 76ers title hopes for this season and beyond.
Multiple teams were interested in Simmons when the Sixers re-opened trade talks. I would imagine that at least one team would still take their chances on a player of his talent. We’ll have to wait and see how things fare moving forward.
