Getty Ben Simmons #10 of the Brooklyn Nets takes a shot as Furkan Korkmaz #30 and Georges Niang #20 of the Philadelphia 76ers defend during a preseason game at Barclays Center on October 03, 2022 in the Brooklyn borough of New York City.
The NBA season continues to surge forward with each team looking to put the finishing touches on their roster. The Philadelphia 76ers are no different and have a number of tradeable contracts worth keeping an eye on as the February 9th deadline inches closer. In a recent article by Michael Scotto of HoopsHype, the “latest intel HoopsHype has gathered on the top trade candidates for all 30 NBA teams,” was broken down. The article named Furkan Korkmaz and Matisse Thybulle as the two most likely candidates for the Sixers.
As Scotto stated in the article, “Philadelphia is about $1.1 million over the luxury tax, as calculated by Yossi Golzan. Given their limited roles this season, Matisse Thybulle, Forkan Korkmaz, and Jaden Springer could each be trade candidates to help the 76ers avoid that luxury tax bill.”
Avoiding the Luxury Tax
As things currently stand, the Sixers’ total taxable salaries sits at $151,445,847 per Sportrac. The NBA luxury tax threshold for this season is set at $150,267,000 which means they are $1,178,847 over the luxury tax line.
The NBA has a soft salary cap meaning there are a number of ways teams can get creative to exceed the amount of spending. The luxury tax is something to deter teams from overspending as it is an incremental tax that owners must pay based on how much they are over the cap. This affects some owners more than others and is a way to even the playing field for smaller market teams. Based on how much the Sixers are over this line, they must pay a tax rate of $1.50 for every dollar they are over the cap.
Sixers Salary Cap Table for the 2022-23 season:
Tobias Harris: $37.6 million
Joel Embiid: $33.6 million
James Harden: $33 million
PJ Tucker: $10.5 million
De’Anthony Melton: $8.3 million
Furkan Korkmaz: 5 million
Matisse Thybulle: $4.4 million
Danuel House Jr: $4.1 million
Trading Thybulle and Korkmaz?
While one would hope financial repercussions are not the only driving force for trade, Thybulle and Korkmaz still seem high on the list of possible trade pieces. Neither player has seen much opportunity to start the season although the shorthanded stretch has changed this.
After not seeing any time on the court in seven of the first nine games of the season, Korkmaz has seen an expanded opportunity in recent games. Over the past five games, he is averaging 20.3 minutes and producing 8.0 points, 2.0 rebounds, and 1.6 per game. The Turkish standout is also connecting on 41.2% of his three-point attempts and is responsible for what will go down as one of the Sixers’ greatest highlights of the season.
Sixers turned into the Harlem Globetrotters to close out this game
Furkan Korkmaz behind the back pass to Paul Reed which turns into a three-pointer for Furk was not on my Sixers bingo card this season
The hype surrounding Thybulle’s reworked jump shot coming into the year has not been seen as the Washington product is shooting a career-worse 20.0% from beyond the three-point arc. However, his defense continues to be game-changing beyond what shows up in the box score. This is especially the case as the Sixers continue to play more zone defense which is something Doc Rivers has spoken highly of. Thybulle played a notable role in slowing down Trae Young in the recent victory over the Hawks which changed the entire flow of the game.
It is great to see them finding their stride, but neither player fits the two-way identity the Sixers are attempting to embrace. Korkmaz’s defensive concerns and the absence of Thybulle’s offensive game make them capable of being taken advantage of in certain situations. Korkmaz ($5 million) and Thybulle ($4.3 million) each have contracts that can match a number of contracts around the league. If an opportunity arises for them to be flipped for a more balanced wing or a player that fits into the rotation better, expect them to jump on it.