Getty Georges Niang of the Philadelphia 76ers, Royce O'Neale of the Brooklyn Nets
In a March 11 Bleacher Report story, Zach Buckley proposed the Philadelphia 76ers make the following trade with the Brooklyn Nets.
76ers get: Royce O’Neale
Nets get: Furkan Korkmaz, Danuel House, three second-round picks
Buckley explained why O’Neale could not only fit with the Sixers but why he might be the best they could get on the open market.
“The Sixers don’t have many resources to throw around, but they’d really help themselves by finding another two-way wing. Given the budget constraints, O’Neale might be as good as Philly can get.
“He’s a defense-first swingman who keeps increasing his perimeter volume without sacrificing his effectiveness. His 5.5 three-point attempts are a career-high, and so is his 39.1 percent splash rate. He’s even unlocking new layers of his game, manifested in the 3.8 assists he’s tossing out per night.”
Buckley then explained why the Nets might welcome a trade like that.
“The Nets, who are in this strange spot where they need to think about the future but wouldn’t gain much by bottoming out, might deem O’Neale as expendable since they have one of the best three-and-D collections going. If they are fans of Korkmaz or believers in a House bounce-back, they might gladly welcome the pair if they’re attached to a trio of second-round picks.”
Furkan Korkmaz Requested a Trade
On February 9, Keith Pompey of The Philadelphia Inquirer reported that Korkmaz had requested a trade away from the Sixers.
“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 added that the Sixers let Korkmaz know that they had planned to move him in a package deal.
“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.”
When the deadline passed, Korkmaz remained with the Sixers. However, Korkmaz has another year on his deal in which he will be paid $5.4 million, meaning that he could still potentially be used in a trade this coming offseason.
House, on the other hand, has a player option for $4.3 million next season. It remains to be seen if he will pick it up.
Matisse Thybulle’s Thoughts on Time With Sixers
Before the Sixers took on the Portland Trail Blazers on March 10, Thybulle gave his genuine thoughts on his time with the Sixers compared to his current situation with the Trail Blazers while talking with Keith Pompey of The Philadelphia Inquirer.
“It’s hard when you are on such a talented team and a team that has so much demand to win now,” Thybulle said. “And for whatever reason, I fell out of favor in the lineup or whatever you want to call it. And I didn’t really feel like there was an opportunity to really showcase it.
“Now, it feels like I have all the opportunity in the world. The opportunity is there, and it’s going to continue to be there. I’m only receiving encouragement to take advantage of it.”
Thybulle admitted that he played with fear on the Sixers because mistakes would cost him minutes, which is not the case with the Trail Blazers.
“Any player that’s playing out of a place of fear is going to struggle,” he said. “Like there’s going to just be friction in everything you try to do. But when you play for a place of just discipline and receptiveness to what the game’s giving and what you are reading from it. I think there’s a lot more opportunity.
“And for me, specifically, I feel like there was a lot more fear-based play in Philadelphia as opposed to what I’m doing here in Portland.”