Philadelphia 76ers Receive: G Goran Dragic, F OG Anunoby, G Malachi Flynn, TOR 2022 1st Round Pick (Unprotected), TOR 2023 1st Round Pick (Swap, More Favorable to PHI)
Toronto Raptors Receive: G/F Ben Simmons, G/F Furkan Korkmaz
Believe it or not, the Toronto Raptors have a reasonable amount of interest in Ben Simmons, and adding him to their roster could once again make Toronto a championship contender.
After years of being near the top of the Eastern Conference standings and in the playoffs, the Toronto Raptors finished the 2020-21 season with a 27-45 record and failed to make the playoffs for the first time since the 2012-13 season.
Injuries and health protocols derailed the Toronto Raptors season before they could even get going and while Toronto no longer has Kyle Lowry, Pascal Siakam, Fred VanVleet, OG Anunoby, and Gary Trent Jr. remain key talents on this roster for them to build with.
Siakam is a proven All-Star talent and VanVleet put up borderline All-Star numbers last season, so there is no reason why Toronto cannot once again be a tough team to beat in the Eastern Conference.
LATEST NBA NEWS & RUMORS: Ben Simmons Rejects 76ers’ Last-Ditch Effort To Salvage Relationship
Defense has always been key for the Raptors and replacing one All-Star in Kyle Lowry with another in Ben Simmons, who is more versatile and better defensively, could immediately make this Toronto franchise a contending team in the Eastern Conference again.
Goran Dragic seems like a veteran player that the Toronto Raptors would not mind moving on from if they can get a handful of value and while OG Anunoby is a young talent they really like, he is definitely worth leveraging for an All-Star like Simmons.
Both Anunoby and Flynn are two young pieces to the Raptors’ future, but leveraging them now with Dragic and some draft assets for Ben Simmons and Danny Green is definitely a strong move to make Toronto a contender again. They won a title once before in 2019 with Danny Green and they could absolutely do so again after making this deal with the 76ers.
As for Philadelphia, they again do not get an All-Star-level talent, but Goran Dragic has proven himself to be a championship-caliber point guard, as he helped lead the Miami Heat to the NBA Finals in 2020, OG Anunoby is a young, versatile forward that has a chance to win Most Improved Player this upcoming year, and Malachi Flynn gives the Sixers more depth in their backcourt, something they currently do not have a lot of.
LATEST NBA NEWS & RUMORS: Ben Simmons Rejects 76ers’ Last-Ditch Effort To Salvage Relationship
The Minnesota Timberwolves deal earlier is probably a better overall deal for the 76ers in terms of value and production they get, but in terms of guys who are ready to play now and in the future, this Toronto Raptors trade definitely has the edge.
Keeping Simmons in the Eastern Conference may be something the Sixers do not want to do, but if the Toronto Raptors are willing to part ways with key assets of their core, then the Philadelphia 76ers will definitely have to consider this offer as one of the better ones they have received.
