The Philadelphia 76ers could look at making a trade this season with Michael Carter-Williams or Thaddeus Young, as the team is in a heavy rebuild after taking Joel Embiid and Nerlens Noel in the past two drafts and despite winning rookie of the year last season, the Sixers may consider trading MCW since his value is so high and could net some solid draft picks for Sam Hinkie and the franchise.
According to ESPN.com, the Sixers were considering the possibility of trading Carter-Williams ahead of the NBA draft and a team like the Lakers was mentioned as a possibility. The team picked a point guard in the first round and for a little while it looked like MCW would be out, but the team moved that pick and acquired another position player so that talk died down. The team sees Williams as a very solid players, but Marc Stein on ESPN wrote on Twitter that Williams' stock may never be higher than right now, as some execs to not see him as a long term point guard worth big money.
Stein writes that some execs in the NBA see Williams as a player who had his stats and performance inflated by the fact that he played for a terrible team. Hinkie has shown that he is not afraid of making trades and there is a chance he could move the point guard if he feels a deal is worth it. Elfrid Payton was picked at the spot and then traded, so for a moment it looked like the Sixers could be making a move, but either way, the trade rumors were there at one point and with a long term rebuild happening in Philly, they could remain for this season and the next. The team moved Elfrid Payton for another project in Dario Saric and that could be another winner down the line for Hinkie.
Thaddeus Young has been looked at as a player that is likely going to get traded at some point and many felt he would last season. The Sixers moved Spencer Hawes to the Cavaliers and Young could have been next, but now Hinkie could hang onto him until the deadline this year. The team selected Joel Embiid and while he could be out for the year, another injured rookie in Nerlens Noel from last season finally looks healthy.
The team picked Embiid at number three and that was big, as he likely would have been number one had he not been injured. Embiid gives the team a long term building block and they are hoping he can turn into a great center and score after averaging 11.2 points and 8.1 rebounds last season at Kansas.
Carter Williams had a solid season last year while averaging 16.7 points, 6.3 assists and 6.2 rebounds and he played above expectations. The point guard won rookie of the year, but he has shown he is not a great three point shooter and that is something that is valued in the league. The trade of Jrue Holiday last season opened things up for Carter-Williams and on draft night he said no matter what the trade rumors say, he will come out and play hard for his team.
