The Sixers have had their fair share of trade rumors this season, especially with the season going the way it did before the COVID-19 pandemic. One name that seems to be tossed around by most fans is Al Horford, after agreeing to a four-year $109 million contract.
As fans watched the team this year, the sheer size of the starting lineup created offensive problems, with a clogged lane because of a lineup that consisted of Joel Embiid, Ben Simmons, Josh Richardson, Tobias Harris and Al Horford at the start of the season. This lineup alone just seems too crowded and the consideration to surround Ben and Joel with some new faces next season is likely, even if some type of playoff is allowed later this summer.
One rumor Sixers fans have been floating around is moving Al Horford for Sacramento Kings guard Buddy Hield. This has been a talking point for nearly the entire season. This could workout for both parties since the Kings wanted Horford in the offseason, and supposedly Buddy Hield has requested a trade from Sacramento.
To add fuel to the fire, Hield posted on Instagram Wednesday night to address social distancing, and he also replied to an interesting comment. A Sixers fan commented on his post, “Trust the Process,” Buddy replied promptly with “big facts”.
Hield has been in the league for most of the Sixers “process” and he seems to be like an ideal fit to help this team find their offensive identity. Something clearly needs to change on the floor with the focus on the Sixers two young stars. The propaganda that the two cannot play together doesn’t add up, and you wouldn’t find fair value necessarily with the potential Embiid and Ben both have as they move toward their prime.
With some coaching and front office overhaul, on top of a few personnel changes could really take this team to the next level. Even with the amount of ineptitude we see from the Sixers as a franchise they still have played to a slightly elite level amid huge problems.
It will be interesting to see how the team moves forward and considers what to do in all of this, but I think we can all agree that the team needs to add a guard of Hield’s caliber to help get this team over the hump.