Potential landing spots for Ben Simmons: Sacramento Kings
I haven’t been shy about what I believe the Kings should do in this situation. I believe the Kings should be all-in on Simmons and that they shouldn’t look back. Simmons has a higher ceiling than De’Aaron Fox and that should be a selling point.
The big question is whether they believe a Simmons-Tyrese Haliburton duo is better than Fox-Haliburton. If the answer is yes, I’m not sure what the holdup is here.
Perhaps a potential deal could revolve around a Buddy Hield and De’Aaron Fox (and picks) swap to Philadelphia for Simmons, Tobias Harris, and one of their young players (Tyrese Maxey or Matisse Thybulle), and, to make it all work financially, the Kings could also send Marvin Bagley to a third team.
That’s probably what the framework of the deal would have to look like, but would hinge on the Kings’ willingness to put Fox in a deal. Right now, they’re reportedly (subscription required) not there yet. If that’s true, that takes them out of the Simmons sweepstakes.
Verdict: Sell