The Toronto Raptors have been able to bask in the glory of watching some of their Atlantic Division rivals falter in the playoffs, with Ben Simmons and the Philadelphia 76ers’ collapse ranking at the very top of that list given their status as the No. 1 seed in the conference and all of their star power.
Trae Young and the Atlanta Hawks were able to take them down with a blend of interior defense and shooting. While there is plenty of blame to go around, Simmons is shouldering a good deal of the negativity, as his struggles in this series were painful to watch.
Simmons took just three shots in the fourth quarter in this entire series, routinely failed to crack double-digits in points, and was completely scared at the prospect of shooting free throws at his 34% clip. His three All-Star appearances aren’t saving him from all of this blowback.
Simmons’ poor play in this series has some questioning the prospect of trading him, as his style of play doesn’t seem to be a great fit alongside Joel Embiid. Could the Raptors end up being the beneficiary of a sign-and-trade, especially with Kyle Lowry on the market and potentially eyeing a Philly homecoming?
With a minimum of 70 attempts, Ben Simmons' 34.2% free throw percentage this postseason is the worst in a postseason in NBA history. pic.twitter.com/G12fiDSXVN
— ESPN Stats & Info (@ESPNStatsInfo) June 21, 2021
Ben Simmons contract details
Simmons is in the first year of a five-year, $177 million max contract that Rich Paul helped him sign in Philadelphia. This further limits his trade market, as the Venn diagram of “teams looking to add Simmons in order to contend” and “teams who can afford that contract” might end up being two circles that never overlap.
The contract’s value has actually increased to $190 million by virtue of Simmons being named an All-NBA player in 2019-20. In addition to a 15% trade kicker, Simmons’ contract could balloon to over $200 million if named to the All-NBA first team, meaning a trade would have heavy financial implications.
The Raptors could end up getting Lowry to agree to a deal that makes the money match up, sending the veteran to Philly and bringing Simmons to Toronto. While they CAN do this move, they should take a step back and figure out if they SHOULD do it before they pull the trigger.