NBA Trades: 6 Deals Portland must consider for Damian Lillard

NBA Trades #4: Philadelphia 76ers

According to ESPN’s Brian Windhorst, the Philadelphia 76ers could have already traded for Lillard had they been willing to trade Tyrese Maxey. As it is, that doesn’t seem likely to happen, but it should. While I can understand the reasoning behind keeping a 21-year-old who just averaged better than 20 points per game, Philly has a limited window to build around MVP Joel Embiid.

Thus, pairing him and Lillard together could be the perfect combination. Better yet, by trading Maxey and Tobias Harris’ expiring contracts, they might perhaps convince former MVP James Harden to stay for another season and form a high-powered big three. Doing so would give their team a strong chance to win the East while sticking it to three other teams on this list who share the same conference.t

It would also limit the Sixers’ ceiling in the long term without a young player like Maxey to help Embiid as he enters his 30s. That being said, they might only have a few runs left with Embiid, and as things currently stand, they don’t have what it takes to beat some of the East’s elite teams. Acquiring Lillard would be a drastic move that would limit their future but boost their title chances.

For Portland, Harris’ big expiring contract could be valuable at the trade deadline, and Maxey would arguably be the best young player offered for Dame. Then again, his fit with Henderson is sketchy, and they would have to pay him after next season. Still, they might say yes to a deal involving him.