Philadelphia 76ers
Dream trade target: Jimmy Butler
Realistic trade target: Tari Eason
It's been a disastrous season for the Philadelphia 76ers. Sure, injuries have played a big part in this team's disappointments this year, but I'm not sure how comfortable I am necessarily in placing all their blame on that. Nevertheless, if this team could, right now, swap Paul George for Jimmy Butler, I think they would. I believe that in an ideal world, the Sixers never sign PG during the offseason and are trying to trade for Jimmy heading into the trade deadline. They whiffed by not re-signing him back in 2019 and we all know how much Joel Embiid adores Jimmy as a player. There's no second-guessing here.
But that's an extremely unlikely scenario - even for NBA 2K standards. Short of the Miami Heat and Sixers agreeing to a Jimmy for PG swap, the Sixers could pivot toward a much more realistic trade target like Tari Eason. As a player who is a backup in Houston, he could be an answer to some of the depth issues that the Sixers are currently facing. However, there's no question Houston would be open to such a move, especially considering how well they've been playing so far this season.
Phoenix Suns
Dream trade target: Jimmy Butler
Realistic trade target: John Collins
When it comes to the Phoenix Suns, there's no hiding their ideal intentions heading into the final few weeks before the NBA Trade Deadline. It doesn't take a great detective, or one at all, to point out that the Suns really, really want Jimmy Butler. If it wasn't for Bradley Beal's no-trade clause, there's a strong point to be made that Jimmy would already be a Sun right now. It's pretty clear that Jimmy is Phoenix's dream trade target heading into the trade deadline. However, unless something changes quickly, it doesn't appear as if that scenario is going to play out.
At this point, I'm willing to bet that the Miami Heat would much rather let Jimmy walk in free agency than they would want to absorb the final few years of Beal's deal. Nevertheless, one realistic trade target that could theoretically help the Suns down the stretch is John Collins. Phoenix would have to figure some things out financially but there's reason to believe that Collins' flexibility in the frontcourt could truly help this team as they prepare for the stretch run.