Sixers Predicted to Part Ways With Rotation Piece in ‘Tax-Ducking Trade’

With the NBA Trade Deadline merely days away, Dan Favale of Bleacher Report made one prediction for each NBA team. When he got to the Philadelphia Sixers, he predicted that one or multiple players would be traded to get the Sixers under the luxury tax while also noting it’s one of his easier predictions to make.

“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.

Favale went on to explain why that may be the Sixers’ focus at the deadline.

“Philly is roughly $1.2 million over the luxury-tax line. That isn’t going to stand. General manager Daryl Morey will finagle a salary dump that puts the Sixers under the $150.3 million tax threshold and outfits them with juuust enough runway to surf the buyout market.

“Granted, this can happen as part of a larger trade, too. Philly just isn’t constructed to make one.”

Favale then explained why Korkmaz is the most likely candidate on 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.”

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Sixers Likely to Trade Three Players

While Favale predicts that the Sixers will trade one of Korkmaz, Milton, and/or Springer, Kyle Neubeck of PhillyVoice reported which three Sixers are the most likely to be traded at the deadline.

“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 then explained why the Sixers may look to trade House and Springer in particular.

“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.”

House has lost his place in the Sixers’ rotation this season despite his familiarity with James Harden and P.J. Tucker during their days together with the Houston Rockets.

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Sixers Aim to Upgrade at Trade Deadline

Neubeck explained that while the Sixers are interested in ducking under the luxury tax, their main priority is improving their roster.

“As has been reported elsewhere, if the Sixers can get under the luxury tax threshold prior to the deadline, there’s certainly interest in doing that, though it would not come as a priority over upgrading the roster. ‘Cheaper and better’ would be the ideal outcome for any team in a cap league, not just the Sixers.”

The Sixers are in a tight race at the top of the Eastern Conference with the Boston Celtics, Milwaukee Bucks, Brooklyn Nets, and Cleveland Cavaliers, as they are currently three games behind the Celtics for the No. 1 seed, but only three games ahead of the Cavaliers for the No. 5 seed.

Getting any upgrades at the deadline could make all the difference in what seed they get when the regular season ends.

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