Getty Furkan Korkmaz and Matisse Thybulle of the Philadelphia 76ers
It appears that Furkan Korkmaz no longer wants to be associated with the Philadelphia 76ers. Keith Pompey of The Philadelphia Inquirer reported that the former Sixers’ first-rounder has requested to be traded away at the NBA Trade Deadline on February 9.
“Furkan Korkmaz wants to move on from the 76ers.
“Sources have said the Turkish player has requested to be traded before Thursday’s 3 p.m. trade deadline. Asked about it, Korkmaz would only say he ‘would not confirm nor deny it,'” Pompey reported.
Pompey then detailed that the Sixers planned to move Korkmaz even before he made the request.
“Sixers president of basketball operations Daryl Morey didn’t immediately respond to a text message asking if Korkmaz asked to be traded. But sources have said Korkmaz was informed the Sixers will try to package him in a deal.”
Pompey also said that this has not been Korkmaz’s first trade request since beginning his NBA career with the Sixers in 2017.
“This isn’t the first time that Korkmaz requested to be traded because of lack of playing time. He also asked to be moved during the 2018-19 season. At that time, the Sixers declined to exercise his $2.03 million third-year option before the Oct. 31, 2018, deadline.”
Korkman Among ‘Likely’ Players to be Traded
Kyle Neubeck of PhillyVoice reported that Korkmaz was among three of the players most likely to get traded away by the Sixers.
“In terms of potential outgoings, the most likely names to be sent out are Furkan Korkmaz, Danuel House Jr., and Jaden Springer, sources say, with the first two out of the rotation and the third never having cracked it,” Neubeck said.
Neubeck did not go into much detail about why Korkmaz could be on his way out but explained why House and Springer could be.
“Springer has not made an impact on the team in his first two years, though the Sixers drafted one of the youngest players in the class with the long-term (and frankly, trade value preservation) in mind. House is an interesting one in the sense that I think he’s (in theory) the style of player they’re hunting, but he has disappointed up to this point and is likely to be in deals for pure salary-matching reasons.”
Though he was a rotation player with the Houston Rockets back when they had James Harden, House has not been featured much in the Sixers’ rotation as the season has progressed.
Korkmaz Predicted to be Trade Candidate
Before Korkmaz’s request, Dan Favale of Bleacher Report predicted that Korkmaz was among the most likely to be traded.
“Prediction: Furkan Korkmaz, Shake Milton, or Jaden Springer will be offloaded as part of a tax-ducking trade.
“Welcome to Easy Prediction City. Population: The Philadelphia 76ers,” Favale said.
Between Korkmaz, Milton, and Springer, Favale explained why Korkmaz was more likely than the other two to be traded away from the entire roster.
“Korkmaz projects as the most likely candidate. The Sixers have the second-rounders and cash-on-hand to offset the $5.4 million he’s owed next season, and he makes enough now ($5 million) that they can exchange him for another player and still comfortably skirt the tax.”