Philadelphia 76ers: Pre-NBA trade deadline observations

Trade Deadline Options

Honestly, there aren’t a lot. At least compared to recent years. And the Philadelphia 76ers could very well be eyeing the buyout market. But we’ll take a look at a few possibilities that could work if an opportunity presents itself.

In the aftermath of the historic four-team trade that went down on Tuesday night – involving the Houston Rockets, Denver Nuggets, Atlanta Hawks and Minnesota Timberwolves — the Sixers’ rumors of a Robert Covington reunion in Philly can be put to rest. As part of the thrilling 12-player deal, Covington is on his way to Houston, where they will try to use his veteran locker room presence and two-way craft for a late Western Conference surge.

This isn’t exactly gut-wrenching for the Sixers. While Covington could’ve provided some familiarity to a group that could definitely use some right now, he doesn’t check every box in what the team currently needs in an ideal pickup — he was never very aggressive with the ball in his hands offensively prior to being traded to the Timberwolves. He’s also shooting just under 35 percent from 3, (the second-lowest of his career), which wouldn’t bode well for a team desperate for help primarily in that department.

A pair of other names that have been tossed around leading up to this week are Derrick Rose and Bogdan Bogdanovic.

There has certainly been the most buzz around packaging a trade that would either bring Rose to Philadelphia from the Detroit Pistons, or Bogdanovic from the Sacramento Kings. Between the two, Bogdanovic is the more attractive target. His style would seamlessly fit the Sixers’ pace-and-space offense like a glove. He’s averaging over 14.6 points per game on 38 percent shooting from deep. But here’s where it gets dicey, the Sixers don’t have the valuable pieces they once had in order to guarantee they can make it happen. He is also a restricted free agent this summer.

Rose, on the other hand, seems to be a tad more feasible from a financial standpoint. Given how special he’s been for Detroit this season, they likely won’t give him up cheap.

Shopping Zhaire Smith, Mike Scott and a few other draft assets (future and present) perhaps could be enough to bolster the roster, though it is still unclear how much merit they each have around the league.

And unless there is a team out there willing to absorb a massive contract, you can bet that Tobias Harris and Al Horford will be staying put.