After dealing Michael Carter-Williams to the Milwaukee Bucks last week, it appears no player on the Philadelphia 76ers’ roster is safe — including players who have Rookie of the Year trophies on their mantles. Still, it’s probably safe to assume that Joel Embiid wouldn’t be included in such talks, as the only thing more shameful than dumping MCW on the Bucks would be to ditch Embiid, who has yet to play a minute in the NBA. Apparently, that is not the case. According to Forbes, the Sixers tossed around the idea of trading last year’s #3 overall pick, whose professional career has been mostly defined by his tweeting prowess:
In an unnoticed development at last week’s trade deadline, the 76ers were still trying to trade up for a top pick in this draft, indicating a willingness to talk about Joel Embiid or any player on their team, an NBA source told Forbes.com.
Yes, that’s the Joel Embiid they drafted No. 3 overall last spring. In other words, after going 65-144 over the last two-plus seasons and parting with Jrue Holiday, Nikola Vucevic, Louis Williams, Thaddeus Young, Jodie Meeks, Spencer Hawes, Nick Young and Andre Iguodala, the 76ers don’t have an asset on the lot whom they’re committed to.
All they have to show for that wheeling and dealing is Dario Saric, a hot Euro-prospect who’s signed with a Turkish team through the summer of 2016, and, of course, more No. 1 picks.
Nobody knows how seriously the Sixers considered an Embiid trade, but Liberty Ballers notes that the author, Mark Heisler, is an NBA media veteran, and is probably as connected as anyone to league sources. Still, trading away a potential cornerstone player before even seeing him in an actual NBA game seems like a terrible plan. But these are the Sixers, and all they’ve proven over the last two years is that the word “shame” is not in general manager Sam Hinkie’s vocabulary.
[Forbes, via LibertyBallers, photo: USA TODAY Sports]
