A surprise team in the Eastern Conference could have interest in trading for Philadelphia 76ers’ superstar and reigning NBA MVP Joel Embiid.
The future Hall of Famer recently made headlines when he, at the Uninterrupted Film Festival, expressed his desire to win the NBA Championship, stating he’s unsure if it will be with the 76ers “or anywhere else.” This of course has led to some speculation that he could eye an exit from Philadelphia.
Following Embiid’s words, Stefan Bondy of the New York Daily News explained that Embiid could be on the radar of one of the 76ers’ Atlantic Division rivals in the New York Knicks:
“As the Daily News reported, Embiid has been mentioned for months around league circles as the Knicks’ ideal trade candidate. Leon Rose, who served as Embiid’s agent before taking over New York’s front office, has accumulated a bevy of future draft picks — although some are protected and losing value — while demonstrating restraint in negotiations for stars lesser than the reigning MVP.”
Embiid hasn’t outright asked the 76ers to be traded. If he did that, however, there certainly wouldn’t be a shortage of teams interested in his services. And as Bondy notes, the Knicks do have a plethora of draft picks at their disposal to offer up.
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The 76ers have consistently underachieved in the postseason despite having Embiid and James Harden. The club has qualified for the postseason every year since 2018, yet they haven’t once advanced past the second round.
Philly found themselves one game away from the final four this past season, but they blew a 3-2 series lead to the rival Boston Celtics in the Eastern Conference Semifinals. The team fired head coach Doc Rivers and replaced him with Nick Nurse, who led the Toronto Raptors to a league championship in 2019.
