Wouldn’t be surprising if Sixers made no trades at deadline
While Joel Embiid’s left knee injury has certainly affected the way the Philadelphia 76ers play on the court, don’t expect his bone bruise to affect them off of it.
In other words, president of basketball operations Daryl Morey’s approach to the March 25 trade deadline won’t change because Embiid is expected to miss at least two weeks following an awkward landing on a dunk in last Friday night’s victory over the Washington Wizards.
As long as the Sixers project Embiid to be back dominating within, say, four weeks, there’s no reason to acquire another center because the combination of Dwight Howard, Tony Bradley and — when Doc Rivers opts to go with a small lineup — Ben Simmons or Mike Scott should be able to hold the fort for the 28-13 Sixers.
Even if Embiid ends up missing four weeks, which would mean an April 3 return against the visiting Timberwolves, he’d still have six weeks until the May 16 regular-season finale vs. the Orlando Magic. That’s plenty of time for Embiid to get back in playing shape and return to an MVP-caliber level by the playoffs.
Unless talks pick up closer to the deadline, it wouldn’t be a big surprise if the Sixers don’t end up making a significant move. Yes, there’s no guarantee Morey will pull off any trades by March 25.
The Sixers, who are tied with the Brooklyn Nets for the best record in the Eastern Conference, have been receiving better performances from the bench of late. That’s one reason the team won six in a row, including two straight without Embiid, prior to Wednesday night’s 109-105 overtime loss to the visiting Milwaukee Bucks. And the team chemistry is good.
How would the fans react if Morey keeps the roster intact at the deadline? The Philly faithful, who pretty much always want more talent, might be somewhat disappointed, but some of these folks were also convinced the Sixers could somehow acquire 26-yearold Bulls franchise player Zach LaVine for a package that wouldn’t include one of the Sixers stars. It’s not going to happen.