The Philadelphia 76ers are going to look a lot different come the NBA offseason than they do right now. General manager Daryl Morey has been preparing for the 2024 NBA offseason for years, as this is the one he thought his team could make a big splash during.
Morey has essentially wiped the slate clean. Heading into the offseason, the 76ers will have only two players, Joel Embiid and Paul Reed, under contract. With some maneuvering and salary cap manipulation, Philadelphia could have the room to add two max contract players to their roster before re-signing Tyrese Maxey.
Who could the 76ers be looking to add? Based on the betting odds that have been released by Bovada, they could be setting their sights on Los Angeles Clippers star wing player, Paul George.
NBA NEWS & SCORES: Paul George, 2024 NBA offseason, Los Angeles Clippers, Philadelphia 76ers Updates
The 76ers are listed as the odds-on favorites to steal George away from the Clippers at +275. The New York Knicks are a distant second on that list with odds of +950. Los Angeles remains the likeliest team to have George, as they are listed at -220 to retain him.
However, anything can happen once NBA Free Agency begins. If the Clippers wanted to keep George, they likely would have had an extension worked out with him. But, talks between the two sides haven’t gotten very far according to NBA insider Brian Windhorst of ESPN.
“It’s now been three months, give or take, and there’s been no agreement on Paul George, and the word in the NBA is that they’re apart,” Windhorst said on “The Hoops Collective” podcast. It’s not like, let’s have a big problem. They’re apart…
I think the league believes that Paul George wants to remain a Clipper, and there would be concern in the league about recruiting Paul George, especially if you had to give away players to open up space.”
NBA NEWS & SCORES: Paul George, 2024 NBA offseason, Los Angeles Clippers, Philadelphia 76ers Updates
That last tidbit is what makes the 76ers such an intriguing team in the potential George sweepstakes. They won’t have to worry about trading away players to open up cap space as they are going to be entering the summer with a ton of space.
They have nothing to lose when it comes to recruiting George. Roster moves to clear space don’t have to be made as the space will already be there. Philadelphia can pitch George on joining the reigning MVP and an emerging star in Maxey as the missing piece to a strong Big 3.
While some 76ers insiders believe that George’s interest in going to Philadelphia is only to create leverage with his current team, anything can happen in free agency. All it takes is one meeting for his mind to be changed, which the 76ers are hoping they can receive once free agency begins.
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