As NBA free agency began, the 76ers made their first move through a trade with the Sacramento Kings.
Here’s a rundown of the deal.
Sixers Acquire
- Shooting guard Nik Stauskas, last year’s eighth overall pick.
- Power forward Carl Landry
- Center/forward Jason Thompson
- 2018 top-10 protected first-round pick from Sacramento
- The right to switch first-round picks with the Kings in 2016 and 2017.
Kings Acquire
- The rights to several overseas players, none of which are Dario Saric.
My Thoughts
This is an incredibly one-sided trade that makes the Sixers a better team in the immediate future, and also provides them with additional future assets.
Sam Hinkie did a fantastic job taking advantage of a Sacramento team that is desperate to make a splash in free agency, and managed to pry a handful of useful pieces away from the Kings.
The Sixers were in dire need of help at the guard positions, and Nik Stauskas has a chance to win a spot in the starting lineup and become a part of this team’s future. Stauskas didn’t put up impressive numbers in his rookie year, but Sacramento is one of the most poorly run franchises in the league and barely afforded him any playing time. Getting him into a situation with a head coach that has a strong track record helping players develop could be the best thing for him.
With the addition of Stauskas, the Sixers now have three of the league’s top 10 prospects from the 2014 draft. Brett Brown has done wonders in his first two seasons, from his work with Nerlens Noel to finding diamonds in the rough such as Tony Wroten, Robert Covington, and Jerami Grant, and I’m sure he can’t wait to get his hands on another guy with a bit of a pedigree like Stauskas.
It’s amazing that Hinkie was able to pick up another first-round pick in this deal as well. It’s just one more useful asset that the Sixers will have to make themselves better in the future. The right to swap first-rounders with the Kings for the next two years is also a very interesting wrinkle in this trade. I’m sure there are some limitations that would prevent the Sixers from flipping picks if the Kings are in the top five or top three of the draft over the next two years, but this to me is another sign that the Sixers aren’t planning on tanking for a third straight year.
Apart from the fact that the additions of Stauskas and Jahlil Okafor already make the Sixers better than they were a year ago, the fact that they’ve now got the right to flip picks with the Kings is something they could really take advantage of depending on how the standings shake out next year. For instance, imagine if the Sixers wind up owning the 10th pick, and Sacramento is picking sixth or seventh? That combined with the other stockpile of first-rounders that the Sixers own could easily turn into a package that allows the team to move into the top five, making tanking this year unnecessary.
Finally, the Sixers also picked up a couple of decent spare parts in Carl Landry and Jason Thompson. Both are very serviceable big men, and would serve as decent compliments to Noel and Okafor. Picking up these two make it very unlikely that the Sixers retain the services of Thomas Robinson, who is an unrestricted free agent.
Bottom line is that there’s nothing not to like about this deal. Sam Hinkie pulled off an incredibly one-sided deal, giving up next to nothing in the process. The Sixers may have another deal similar to this one up their sleeves as well. There are a lot of desperate, shortsighted teams out there looking to do the same thing that Kings are doing. I’d be shocked if the Sixers don’t pick up another first-rounder somewhere down the line in exchange for taking on some more salary.
1 more tank pleeeeeeeeeeeeease. WE NEED SIMMONS.
we get simmons with what we got now we will be a fucking dynasty in the 2020s
Just because we tank doesn’t equal Simmons, just look at the last two years. No wiggins, no Russell he would be great to have tho.
FROM THE BIG LEAD
Nik Stauskas, a great shooter at Michigan who couldn’t get off the bench in Sacramento, is headed to Philadelphia in a bizarre trade that is a huge victory for the 76ers. Now only do the 76ers get Stauskas, who will instantly be a rotation player, but they also landed Carl Landry and Jason Thompson as the Kings were desperate to unload salaries. It’s unclear if the 76ers will keep Landry or Thompson, but both could wind up playing next season if they stay, especially given the recent injury history to anyone tall that Philadelphia acquires.
Here’s why the 76ers fleeced the Kings – they got a future first round pick (protected, and can’t be had before 2018) but more importantly, Philadelphia somehow managed to acquire the power to swap 1st round picks with the Kings in 2016 and 2017. In return, the Sacramento Clowns got the “rights” to overseas players (not Dario Saric) and a future 2nd round pick.
All because the Kings are desperate for relevance and want to chase free agents Wesley Matthews (who is coming off a torn ACL) and Rajon Rondo (who is coming off the worst season in his career). If the Kings don’t get either player (or Monta Ellis, another guard they want to land), it’s an epic disaster. If Cousins and Rondo end up sharing a locker room – also, a disaster.
The 76ers will be bad in 2015-2016 – I think they could be the worst team in the league. So the draft pick swap may not come into play. But what about a doomsday scenario for the Kings: They whiff on free agents this week, DeMarcus Cousins get hurt, and the Kings finish at the bottom of the brutal West.
Yikes.
Guess the Kings are confident none of that will happen, even though we’re talking about a hurting franchise that has been a dumpster fire for about a decade now.
Poor Vlade Divac. He had a very nice career with the Lakers, then was traded for Kobe Bryant, and now he’s in way over his head in the Sacramento front office.
The move is all-around genius for the 76ers, who are still a couple years from being competitive, but at least are rounding out a passable rotation next season:
C – Okafor, Embiid (injury pending)
PF – Noel, Mbah a Moute, Richaun Holmes
SF – Jerami Grant, JP Tokoto, Glenn Robinson
SG – Robert Covington, Nik Stauskas, Hollis Thompson
PG – Tony Wroten, Isaiah Canaan
There’s only one player listed here above 25 (Mbah a Moute, who is 28), and I omitted players like PG Ish Smith (26), C Henry Sims (25) and SG Jason Richardson (34). The 76ers are in better shape than the Knicks going forward.
I don’t think the Sixers will be the worst team in the NBA. They have more now than they did a year ago in which they were not the worst team in the league. I think NY and possibly LAL will be worse. Throw SAC (no direction) in there too.
Teams that (as of today) could be worse than the Sixers…
(in no particular order)
1. Detroit (Monroe gone, all they’ve got is Drummond at this point. Very poor guard situation, no wing players, and no four)
2. New York (Even if Carmelo is healthy, this team could be just as bad as they were last year. Disaster of a franchise)
3. Orlando (Even with a couple of talented guys in Vucevic and Oladipo, they only managed 25 wins last year. Sixers could very well match or exceed that win total this year.)
4. Denver (Nuggets are completely cleaning house right now. Only a matter of time before Lawson, Gallinari, and Faried are traded. Denver looks like they’re destined to be worst in the league next year)
5. Minnesota (Timberwolves should be much improved in year two of wiggins plus the addition of Towns…but they’re not head and shoulders above the Sixers.)
6. Sacramento (Even if the Kings land Rondo, it doesn’t make a difference. Bad blood between Cousins and George Karl already made this a doomed project.)
7. Lakers (No free agents are going to Los Angeles. Even if Kobe Bryant plays, he’s a shell of what he was. Franchise can’t take a step forward until he’s out of the picture.)
Relax Denny.
Its a nice move by the Sixers but they still have noone that create their own shot from the perimeter outside of Wroten. The only 2 shooters are Covington and Stauskus so far and teams will adjust to Covington this year compared to last year where noone knew who he was and by the end of season he was played much differently and it showed.
The Sixers are still a lottery team. If you are under .500 in the East you are still terrible.
Well, yeah that’s pretty much what I was saying. That list was of teams that COULD be worse than the Sixers next year.
This is still a team that is improving for sure, but will be somewhere in the top 10 of the lottery, probably somewhere between four and seven.
They won 19 games with a barren roster a year ago…now with Okafor at the five, Noel another year better, Stauskas, and some of the other younger guys continuing to improve under Brown, They should be good for somewhere between 20-25 wins this year at least.
Not the worst team in the league, but still in the lottery. And with control over their own pick, the Lakers’ pick, and the right to switch with the Kings (assuming that switch doesn’t have any kind of protection on it) the Sixers should be in a very good position next year.
Denny Keith Pompey has a starting lineup right now that looks like this.
Canaan-PG
Stauskus-SG
Jerami Grant-SF(I love this kid….even better than KJ McDaniels)
Noel-PF
Okafor-C
Wroten and Covington as 2nd unite scorers etc.
Grant allows you to hide Stauskus on the worst of the 2/3 they are facing that night.
Point guard is this team’s biggest black hole right now…I have to think they go with Ish Smith over Canaan right?
Ish is a little more of a traditional point guard, and seemed to have some good chemistry with Noel. Canaan is a shooting guard in a point guard’s body, and doesn’t have enough consistency in his shot, at least not yet.
I agree with you about Jerami Grant. He’s a really intriguing guy, he’s got the body to be an elite wing defender, and if he keeps working on that three-point shot, he could really be effective for awhile here.
Denny they will bring in another vet at the PG position IMO. Maybe someone that can get Brett Browns points across on the court. They arent a ton of PGs that will be exact fits out there so maybe they mold someone in house(Canaan-Smith-FA?).
With the amount of picks in the upcoming draft I can understand if they dont hitch their wagon to someone outside.
Mhenski – You had better get that pornography off this site or you’re going to be history. I’m going to give you a day to get it off.
Unreal trade. If they get their hands on Simmons next year they should start building a statue for Hinkie. Sixers will likely be picking top 3. Only team I could see realistically losing more than the Sixers is the Knicks. Kings might be just as bad as them especially if shit blows up with Cousins. So we basically we have 2 shots at that first with the Kings now next year. And even if they miss out on number 1 they will could have 5 first rounders next year to trade up and could package one Noel or Embid with that. They won’t have to move up much. I think they might have like 7-8 additional first round picks already from other teams in the next 3 years.
Brett Brown stated a couple of days ago that his offense is about pass space and pace.
Covington and Stauskus bring that and its obvious right now unless he falls on his face and Embiid is miraculous transformation of young Olajuwon they are building through Okafor from the block out. Shooters like Stauskus and Covington also allow Noel to roam abit as well helping his transition and more than likely solidifying him at the 4 spot.
Just read Thompsons contract of 6.8mil is non guaranteed next year. He will be a valuable commodity for a team trying to deal for cap space.
This trade looks better and better the more you dig.
Milwaukee Bucks reportedly sign PF Greg Monroe of the Detroit Pistons to a 3 Year Max Deal of $50 Million… ($16.66 Million Average Per Year)
Watched Monroe get busy down here for years. Kid can play. Really good pickup for Bucks. It will be interesting to see how they get Jabari Parker incorporated. If they move Middleton purely to 2 than that means hes the SF. They experimented with him at the PF position last year but that was not a good look.
Parker,Monroe, Antetokounmpo, Henson, Puchilia & Plumlee give them an Active and Young Front Line with MCW, Middleton, Recently acquired Vasquez & OJ Mayo in the Back Court and they added SG Rashad Vaughn in the Draft as well
Giannis has yet to develop a jump shot but they have definitely loaded themselves up.
**NBA NEWS****
Pacers Sign 29 Year Old Guard Monta Ellis to a 4 Year $44 Million Deal after Ellis reportedly turned down a 4 Year $48 million Office from Sacramento per ESPN..
Pacers now have Guards George Hill,Rodney Stuckey,CJ Watson, Draft Pick Joseph Young to go along with Paul George on the outside
I gotta eat some crow on Hinkie…this is a great deal..a massive steal. I like Landry as a backup too…The Sixers are moving in the right direction