The conflict between Ben Simmons and the Philadelphia 76ers has clearly reached a point of no return and a trade could be imminent. The Australian's long stand-off could finally come to an end soon with the organization reportedly in talks with multiple NBA teams.
It looks abundantly clear that neither the Australian nor the Sixers are interested in continue tied to each other but the franchise has been reluctant to let the 25-year-old leave so easily. However, December 15 is drawing nearer and Philadelphia will fancy their chances of getting something valuable in exchange.
According to Shams Charania of The Athletic, a group of teams has already shown interest in trading for the former first overall pick. Most notably, the Los Angeles Lakers and the New York Knicks are among those sides.
Lakers, Knicks reportedly show interest in trading for Ben Simmons
"The 76ers are ramping up their efforts to spark multi-team trade scenarios to move Simmons, sources said, and a fresh pool of teams has emerged as potential destinations," Shams Charania reports, as quoted by Clutchpoints.
"The New York Knicks, Los Angeles Lakers, Minnesota Timberwolves, Portland Trail Blazers, Sacramento Kings, Indiana Pacers and Cleveland Cavaliers are among the teams interested in Simmons, sources said, although it’s unclear how much traction Philadelphia truly has on any move."
Simmons has obviously been linked to other teams before and his previous connection was with the Portland Trail Blazers as Damian Lillard was reportedly interested in joining forces with the Australian.
But Dame denied those rumors and the Sixers were also understood to haven't heard anything from Portland, while they wouldn't be interested in what they can offer. Philadelphia have been extremely patient to resolve Simmons' future so far.
But now it looks like they're finally ready to move on him as they've reportedly engaged in talks with a number of teams. The Lakers and Knicks would be two attractive destinations for Simmons but they will probably not get him unless they offer another player of his caliber in exchange.
