Getty Joel Embiid and James Harden of the Philadelphia 76ers
The New York Knicks and their Eastern Conference semifinal tormentor Miami Heat are waiting for Philadelphia 76ers superstar Joel Embiid to ask for a trade, according to a Yahoo Sports report.
“Everyone’s circling, waiting. The Knicks and Miami are keeping an eye on everything going on,” a league source told Yahoo Sports’s Vincent Goodwill.
Embiid, who will turn 30 next March, is coming off his first MVP season that ended in another disappointing second-round exit. He’s again staring at another drama-filled summer involving a co-star two years after Ben Simmons staged a holdout.
James Harden, the superstar who was swapped for Simmons, had demanded a trade and up the ante when he publicly called out 76ers general manager Daryl Morey.
“Daryl Morey is a liar, and I will never be a part of an organization that he’s a part of,” Harden said Monday during his Adidas tour in China. “Let me say that again: Daryl Morey is a liar, and I will never be a part of an organization that he’s a part of.”
Morey is believed to be seeking “Los Angeles Clippers’ future first-round draft picks with the so-called “Seven Year Rule” in effect” more than Terance Mann, according to the Yahoo Sports report.
ESPN’s Adrian Wojnarowski reported on August 12 that the 76ers had ended trade talks with the Clippers, which led to Harden’s public roasting of Morey.
“Another teardown for the 76ers could lead Morey to believe he has time to rebuild it from the tatters he helped create, starting with the Simmons fiasco and now this mess with Harden,” Goodwill wrote.
Potential Knicks, Heat Trade Packages
The Knicks have resisted cashing in their draft capital for lesser stars this summer, including withdrawing from earlier trade talks with the Clippers for Paul George.
At the moment, the Heat have Bam Adebayo, Tyler Herro and at least three first-round picks (in case a trade for Damian Lillard does not push through) to offer to Philadelphia in a potential Embiid trade.
The Knicks, on the other hand, could build a package out of their seven first-round draft picks (their own and from other teams with varying protections) plus young players with upsides such as RJ Barrett, Sixth Man of the Year finalist Immanuel Quickley and Quentin Grimes.
Rockets Pose Another Threat to Knicks
Kelly Iko of The Athletic linked Embiid to the Houston Rockets because of his strong ties with their new coach Ime Udoka.
“Obviously, the New York angle is there, but another team is Houston as well just because of the bond between Joel and Ime and just that situation where they’ve added [veteran players],” Iko said on The Athletic NBA Show.