The Philadelphia 76ers could make a push to acquire a star forward from the Charlotte Hornets.
The suspension of Paul George has left a bit of a void in the Philadelphia 76ers' rotation.
Whether it's his scoring and rebounding contributions or his impact on the defensive end, Philadelphia coach Nick Nurse needs to find ways to fill these roles. The front office could potentially help out by trading for another star forward, who could fill in for George quite nicely.
This player is Charlotte Hornets' Miles Bridges, who Liberty Ballers predicts Philadelphia could trade for ahead of the Feb. 5 deadline.
"There are some hurdles to clear on this one, but Bridges looks like your prototypical trade candidate with a seller," Liberty Ballers' Greg Frank wrote. "He’s been a productive scorer at all three levels for the Hornets, rebounds well for someone 6-foot-7, and his contractual status makes now sort of the perfect time for the Hornets to move on from him."
It would cost the 76ers quite a lot to acquire Bridges, as he is in the second season of a three-year, $75 million contract. This likely means parting ways with Quentin Grimes and Kelly Oubre Jr. to make the salaries match along with a first-round pick, but is Bridges worth Philadelphia giving up two key contributors and draft capital?
Bridges, age 27, is having a strong campaign with the Hornets, averaging 18.3 points, 6.1 rebounds, and 3.5 assists on 44.7% shooting and 33.0% shooting from three-point range in 50 appearances. He is not by any means an elite defender but is also far from a liability on that end of the floor.
Having Grimes and Jared McCain is redundant if the latter is able to play like he did in his rookie season. The issue with moving on from Grimes, however, is he has a no-trade clause, meaning he needs to sign off on going to Charlotte.
Trading away Oubre is a bit tougher to justify, as he is proving on a nightly basis why he deserves to remain in Philadelphia. He is averaging 14.2 points and 4.6 rebounds on 48.7% shooting in 28 games played for the Sixers.
While Bridges would act as a phenomenal fill-in option for George, giving up Grimes and Oubre may be too high of an ask for Philadelphia to agree to.
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