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One name that has been closely connected to the Philadelphia 76ers all offseason is Eric Gordon. With the Houston Rockets in the midst of a rebuild, they have been openly shopping the former Sixth Man of the Year. Last season, the 33-year-old averaged 13.4 PPG and 2.7 APG while shooting an impressive 41.2% from beyond the arc.
While the Sixers have maintained their interest in acquiring Gordon, there has been one major roadblock. That being Tobias Harris and his sizable contract. An Eastern Conference executive recently told Heavy’s Sean Deveney that the Sixers being unable to find a team to take on the veteran forward is halting their chances of making a move for Gordon.
“They want Eric Gordon but none of that can happen unless they find a place for Tobias Harris. And they have exhausted every avenue on a Tobias deal. They overpaid him and no one wants that contract. That’s just the situation they’re in.” The exec told Deveney. “They will keep trying to find ways to get Gordon but the Rockets have better offers. They’ve been saying that Tobias Harris is not getting traded but the reality is, he is not getting traded because they could not find a deal for him, not because they stopped trying.”
Currently, Harris is the Sixers’ highest-paid player at $37.6 million. The veteran forward appeared in 73 games last season and averaged 17.2 PPG, 6.8 RPG, and 3.5 APG.
Sixers Have ‘Minimal Traction’ in Matisse Thybulle Extension Talks
Around the NBA Draft, another player the Sixers were gauging the market on is Matisse Thybulle. Although multiple teams were interested in the All-Defense wing, nothing managed to come about.
As of now, Thybulle is now eligible to sign an extension off his rookie contract. However, Bleacher Report’s Jake Fischer recently pointed out that such talks haven’t gotten far at this point.
There hasn’t been traction on extension conversations with Thybulle, sources said. Most extension dialogues don’t begin in earnest until summer approaches fall. But Thybulle may be the perfect case to buck the league’s recent trend of growing extension numbers. If the current trade market is an early indication of next summer’s free agency, Thybulle’s value could struggle to recover from a poor postseason showing.
While Thybulle is an elite perimeter defender, his shortcomings on the other side of the floor have proven costly for the Sixers at times. Now armed with two-way wings like P.J. Tucker and Danuel House Jr., they can be less reliant on the 25-year-old. Last season, Thybulle averaged 5.7 PPG, 1.7 SPG, and 1.1 BPG.
Sixers to Face Brooklyn Nets in Preseason Matchup
It’s still some time away, but NBA teams have begun to release their preseason schedules. The Brooklyn Nets recently announced their four matchups, one of them being against the Sixers on October 3rd.
As far as preseason games go, this one could see a lot of hype around it. Since he did not take the floor for the Nets after being traded at the deadline, Ben Simmons‘ first taste of NBA action in over a year could be against his former team. Seth Curry will also likely suit up against the Sixers after being sent to Brooklyn with Simmons for James Harden.
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