Why The Philadelphia 76ers Do The Deal 

For the Sixers, this is all about convincing Joel Embiid to stick around. 

That may not be an easy task. It’s been suggested that if Harden does leave, Embiid may not be far behind. The Sixers surely would prefer to avoid fielding a trade request from their perennial MVP candidate. 

Acquiring Siakam may just do the trick. For starters, Embiid and Siakam are close. Landing one of his best friends in the league may do enough to appease the big man. 

Of course, that’s not enough reason to do the deal on its own. Luckily, the pair make basketball sense together too.

NBA NEWS & TRADE RUMORS: James Harden, Miami Heat & Philadelphia 76ers Updates

Embiid’s rim protection with Siakam’s versatile defense should make the Sixers formidable on that end. On offense, the Sixers would be establishing a bully ball identity that ought to be effective. 

Unless Harden makes up his mind to stay, of course.