A few notes on Ben Simmons and the Knicks:
Simmons is among the players on New York’s radar as a target ahead of the Feb. 10 trade deadline, sources confirm.
The Knicks, of course, are among several teams to express interest in Simmons. But it doesn’t seem as if they can offer what Philadelphia and team president Daryl Morey covets: a top-25 player.
One member of a team that recently engaged with the Sixers believed the Knicks would need to be part of a multi-team deal to land Simmons.
“They (the Sixers) have been consistent in wanting a top player (in return for Simmons),” the team said. “(The Knicks) would need to get creative.”
The Sixers earlier in the season showed little interest in a package that was centered around young San Antonio Spurs, including Dejounte Murray. So that provides some context into the kind of player Philadelphia wants in return for Simmons.
Morey has said that he is in no rush to make a trade.
But if the Sixers wait until the offseason to deal Simmons, you could argue that they’d wasted a year of Joel Embiid’s prime. Is the organization willing to do that in order to get a better return in a Simmons trade?
To acquire Simmons in a multi-team deal, the Knicks would have to part with significant young talent and draft compensation.
Last offseason, some Knicks decision-makers believed that they’d have to include RJ Barrett, Obi Toppin, and Immanuel Quickley in a package to acquire a top player in his prime.
Would that trio get the Knicks Simmons in a multi-team deal?
New York could also offer significant draft compensation. The club owns the protected rights to four first-round picks and six second-round picks over the next two drafts.
The Athletic reported earlier Monday that the Knicks were among the suitors for Simmons.
