How This Deal Impacts Philadelphia 76ers
The Philadelphia 76ers ultimately want Ben Simmons to come back and play for them. But, Simmons has remained adamant in his stance that he wants a trade from the organization. They aren’t going to just give him away for free, as they want an impact player in return.
This deal with the Utah Jazz would fit that box. Donovan Mitchell is a budding superstar and at 25-years old would be a long-term foundational piece for the team to build the roster up around along with Joel Embiid.
Wasting a prime year of Embiid would not be smart for the 76ers, so they will look to extract as much value for Simmons as they can. If they don’t include landing an impact player, they want to clear some cap space including Tobias Harris. In this deal, they accomplish both of those things.
Along with Mitchell, the 76ers are acquiring Bojan Bogdanovic and Joe Ingles. Bogdanovic is an excellent fit alongside Embiid given his 3-point shooting prowess. Ingles has lost a step or two but is still an excellent 3-point shooter and willing playmaker, so he could help bolster the second unit with his skill set.
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Clearing Harris’ contract would make the 76ers players in free agency for some of the impending stars that could hit the market. They would conceivably be in a position to create a daunting Big 3 with Embiid and Mitchell as the first two building blocks.