“Trading Ben Simmons for CJ McCollum makes the most sense”: Multiple NBA executives believe pairing the Sixers star alongside Damian Lillard is the best option

NBA executives are of the belief that trading CJ McCollum to the Sixers for Ben Simmons is the best available option for the Philly guard. 

Not to beat a dead horse by Ben Simmons was not a good basketball player during the Eastern Conference Semi-Finals against the Atlanta Hawks. He certainly was not player like an All-Star who is owed a $170 million over 5 years. In the 7 games against Trae Young and company, he averaged a measly 10 points while shooting 33% from the charity stripe. 

It’s quite obvious that the Sixers cannot go into the 2021-22 season with their big 3 consisting of Ben Simmons, Joel Embiid, and Tobias Harris as this experiment has failed several times over. Unless the DPOY candidate can commit to improving his game on the offensive end of the floor by tenfold, it’s more than likely that he will not be a Sixer by the time next season starts.

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The 76ers have a couple of options to go for this offseason but with Simmons’s trade value at an all-time low, it’ll be interesting to see who Daryl Morey can snag for him. 

Ben Simmons for CJ McCollum makes sense to most NBA executives. 

It’s quite insane to think about the fact that we’re only a couple months removed from the time when Ben Simmons was the trade chip that the ‘James Harden to Philly’ deal was centered around. After having put on lackluster performances in the Playoffs, the Sixers will be lucky to get someone close to Harden’s caliber.

According to the Ringer’s Kevin O’Connor, multiple executives around the NBA believe trading the Australian native for CJ McCollum is the best option available for the Sixers to make. CJ has proven to be a decent point guard as he’s brought the ball up the floor many times with and without Damian Lillard on the floor.

Ben Simmons took 95 shots in the playoffs. He tried…

67 shots using his right hand
19 shots using both hands
9 shots using his left hand

In his career, over 70% of his shots are righty.

Simmons in 2016: “I think I was supposed to be right-handed.” https://t.co/6Ox3L37jdY

— Kevin O’Connor (@KevinOConnorNBA) June 21, 2021

Also read: “Time to burn Ben Simmons’ jersey”: NBA fans react to Sixers fans burning his jersey following thier Game 7 loss to Trae Young’s Hawks

Philly is in desperate need for shooters as the philosophy of surrounding Joel Embiid with as many shooters as possible still stands. Furthermore, McCollum is much more than just a spot-up shooter as he can get to the rack for Trae Young-esque floaters and also create his own shot in from anywhere on the floor. 

The Sixers could also explore the free agent market as guys like Mike Conley are also what they need. They thought they were getting a Conley type player in George Hill but he’s not a Playoff level player any longer. It should be noted that the Jazz guard is an unrestricted free agent this offseason.