Philadelphia 76ers
It would be an understatement to suggest that the Philadelphia 76ers have had a rough start to the season. This is a team that entered with plenty of expectations and one that has seen this year fall flat on its face. All is not lost and there's still time for the Sixers to salvage their season but things don't look that promising at the moment. With how this season has gone, there's a good chance this team may have some retooling to do if they're going to reemerge as a championship contender in the Eastern Conference.
Part of that retooling could benefit from having the luxury of their own draft picks in the next couple of seasons. Unfortunately, that's not a luxury that the Sixers have at the moment. Heading into the NBA Draft, there's an easy argument to be made that Philly would greatly benefit from reacquiring some of their draft picks back. How feasible that would actually be remains to be seen but it has to be something the front office has at least thought about with how this season has gone.
Why the 76ers should consider a trade with the future in mind: To be completley honest, the Sixers aren't in a terrible spot when it comes to their future draft capital but don't own two of their next three picks. If this team build is going to fall apart, which there is some evidence of so far this season, it would be smart for the Sixers to try and recoup some of their draft picks - especially this year as it appears to be snakebitten due to injury. Philly's 2025 first-round pick is just top 6 protected.
I highly doubt that the Sixers are going to drop into the top six of the draft standings even with all the injuries and disappointment that the team has faced so far this season. However, there is still plenty of value in having a later lottery pick. Right now, the Sixers would be losing the 8th overall pick in what is expected to be a strong draft class. With how this team has drafted of late, that could prove to be a huge missed opportunity for the team. If it can be done, it would be great if they could figure out how to reacquire their first-round pick for this season.