Minnesota Timberwolves Receive: G/F Ben Simmons

Philadelphia 76ers Receive: G D’Angelo Russell, G/F Josh Okogie, MIN 2022 1st Round Pick (Top-5 Protected), MIN 2025 1st Round Pick (Unprotected)

There are plenty of teams around the league who will be interested in Ben Simmons should the 76ers look to trade him and the Minnesota Timberwolves should be at the top of the list of teams that should want to acquire him. In fact, it seems like they do really want to trade for Simmons as Minnesota reporter Darren Wolfson said he has heard some trade talks about the Timberwolves potentially looking to trade for Simmons. 

“I texted with someone that knows Ben Simmons incredibly well, that has working knowledge of all things NBA… My text was, ‘How badly do the Wolves want to trade for Ben Simmons?’ This individual sent me a text, it was one word: ‘Badly.’ Make no mistake, the Wolves have trade interest in Ben Simmons.”

WIth Karl-Anthony Towns and Anthony Edwards as their two main focal points on offense, the Timberwolves have a great, young foundation, but they are still missing that all-around playmaker and someone who can help them defensively. This is exactly the kind of role Ben Simmons would play in Minnesota and he could actually thrive there. 

Not only would this situation be a lot like Philadelphia in the sense that he would be next to a star center and another multi-talented player on the offensive-end of the floor, but the difference for Simmons is that he would have a lot more freedom to expand his game with the Timberwolves. 

READ MORE: NBA Rumors: Timberwolves ‘badly’ want to trade for 76ers star Ben Simmons

Essentially, this team has nothing to lose by trading for Simmons other than salary space. But at the end of the day, they are already paying D’Angelo Russell a ton of money and Ben Simmons definitely possesses more upside than Russell, so really, Minnesota would be improving their talent even though Simmons struggles offensively. 

The only way the 76ers are going to win a title in the Eastern Conference is if they can have a starting unit where everybody is a threat to score. Joel Embiid is a legit MVP candidate and Tobias Harris has played his way to borderline All-Star status, but they need that third key guy on offense. 

Seth Curry stepped up at times this year and was great in the postseason and who knows what the future holds for Danny Green since he is a free agent, which is why adding D’Angelo Russell to run this backcourt could actually work out well. He is not even close to being as good as Simmons defensively, which hurts the 76ers in that category, but offensively, he opens up the door for Philly’s offense to expand drastically. 

There is a lot to like about this trade on both sides of the deal, but is this something that is really worthwhile for both teams? Philadelphia’s championship window is small and they need to make all the right decisions moving forward, so let’s see if this is something that truly makes sense for them to explore this offseason.