The Philadelphia 76ers are hoping the draft lottery stays the same as they try and do a massive rebuild and now trade rumors have Thaddeus Young as a target for the Minnesota Timberwolves in the Kevin Love trade talks and now Sam Hinkie will have to decide whether to trade Young and possibly Michael Carter-Williams in 2014 as the Sixers continue their massive overhaul.
According to ESPN.com, Young has been targeted by the Wolves as a legitimate option to come in and replace Kevin Love if he is traded to the Cavaliers or Bulls this summer. ESPN writes that the Cavs and Chicago are the top two teams trying to trade for Love and that right now Cleveland is in the lead for the deal. ESPN writes that the Sixers could be a target to help the Wolves dump salary, as they are looking to offload JJ Barea and Kevin Martin and since the Sixers have so much space, they could be a partner if they end up trading Young.
The 76ers trading Young is no guarantee though, as he is on a decent deal over the next two years with a player option for next season and that could be enough reason to keep him. The Sixers also could wait until the trade deadline when demand is higher to eventually make a trade and that would be in line with what Hinkie has done over the past year. The Sixers want draft picks and they are basically starting over as a franchise with Embiid coming in injured.
There were some rumors that Carter-Williams could get traded, but that likely is not happening after the team traded Elfrid Payton at the draft after selecting him. MCW is coming off of a rookie of the year win and he could be a major part of the rebuild, although the Sixers could consider trading him if the package is right. The Wolves have looked at Young as a main option to replace Love and if they can swing that deal, they may be able to trade Love and still compete in the west, but that will be very difficult to do no matter what they pull off.
The Sixers are in a hard rebuild with GM Sam Hinkie and while they aren't exactly planning on tanking, the team knows they will be terrible again this season. The team now reportedly is asking for the new lottery rules to be delayed, according to ESPN.com writer Brian Windhorst, as that will make it harder for the Sixers to get the number one pick. The team isn't saying that it's going to tank, but they know how bad they are and they are desperate to get a top pick next year after being at number three this season.
The Sixers took Joel Embiid with their top pick and they also have players like Nerlens Noel and Michael Carter-Williams and also acquired Dario Saric and that means they are years away from contending. The team was one of the worst in the league last season and with Embiid likely out for the season, they are expected to be bad once again.
