NBA Rumors: Sixers Could Trade Ben Simmons Or Tobias Harris For Devin Booker, ‘Metro USA’ Suggests
Since being selected as the No. 13 overall pick in the 2015 NBA Draft, Phoenix Suns shooting guard Devin Booker has managed to turn himself into one of the fastest rising superstars in the NBA. Last season, Booker averaged 26.6 points, 4.1 rebounds, and 6.8 assists while shooting 46.7 percent from the field and 32.6 percent from beyond the arc. Unfortunately, despite Booker’s explosive performance almost every night, the Suns remain one of the worst NBA teams in the league.
The Suns may have succeeded in addressing the major problem in their backcourt this summer, but their roster, as currently constructed, doesn’t have what it takes to contend for the NBA championship title or even earn a playoff spot in the deep Western Conference. According to Matt Burke of Metro USA, if the Suns struggle earlier in the 2019-20 NBA season, Devin Booker could soon follow the footsteps of other NBA superstars and find his way out of Phoenix.
One of the NBA teams who could express strong interest in Devin Booker is the Philadelphia 76ers. The Sixers already have an impressive core of Ben Simmons, Josh Richardson, Tobias Harris, Al Horford, and Joel Embiid, but Booker would still be a welcome addition to their roster. However, in order to bring Booker to the City of Brotherly Love, Burke believes that the Sixers would be needing to sacrifice either Simmons or Harris.
“The Sixers would need to ship out either Tobias Harris or Ben Simmons in a swap for Booker, and both are highly unlikely. Teams cannot trade newly signed free agents until December, and Simmons just signed an extension in Philly. The only scenario in which this would make sense is if the Sixers get off to a disastrous start to the 2019-20 season and [general manager] Elton Brand immediately knows he has to shake things up. It should be noted that Brand is not afraid to swing for the fences early in the season, as the trade for Jimmy Butler occurred in early November last year.”
Just a video of Ben Simmons balling at 15 pic.twitter.com/4Kp9hWvbCT
— Ballislife.com (@Ballislife) September 6, 2019
In the potential deal that would send Devin Booker to the Sixers, the Suns would definitely prefer to acquire Ben Simmons over Tobias Harris. Simmons is four years younger and could be a perfect replacement for Booker to be the next face of the Suns’ franchise. Simmons may still have plenty to work on his game, but like Booker, he has great potential to become a legitimate superstar in the NBA. Before he was selected as the No. 1 overall pick in the 2016 NBA Draft, Simmons had drawn comparisons to Los Angeles Lakers superstar LeBron James, who is widely considered as the best basketball player on the planet.
According to a previous The Inquisitr article, another potential trade partner for the Suns in a potential deal involving Booker is the Boston Celtics. After deciding not to go after Anthony Davis this summer, the Celtics still have a plethora of trade assets to engage in a blockbuster deal. To match Booker’s massive contract, however, the Celtics could explore a trade package centered on All-Star forward Gordon Hayward.
