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The Philadelphia 76ers Are Reportedly Hoping To Land Damian Lillard

The Philadelphia 76ers have been patient with Ben Simmons for the last five years, but after Simmons’ abysmal playoff performance in the 2021 NBA playoffs, it does get to a point where enough is enough.

The 76ers suffered enough disappointment for their liking, so it does makes sense if the 76ers are looking to move Simmons to overcome their playoff woes and find a better pairing for Joel Embiid. One player that is being linked to the Sixers is Portland Trail Blazers star Damian Lillard.

According to Kevin O’Connor of The Ringer, the 76ers are indeed showing interest in landing the Blazers star whose name has been getting tossed around in this year’s rumor mill. O’Connor’s story focused on the Los Angeles Clippers, but came with a bit of tidbit about Simmons and the Sixers. 

Damian Lillard is disgruntled with the Trail Blazers, according to Yahoo’s Chris Haynes. It’s worth noting that in 2019 Lillard was on Leonard’s list of stars he wanted to team up with, league sources say. But Lillard has four seasons remaining on his contract. Portland doesn’t need to trade him. If it came to the point where a trade was inevitable, Los Angeles wouldn’t have many goodies to add to a trade involving George, and if the Blazers would rather have younger players and picks, the Clippers would easily be outbid.

There’s also Ben Simmons, the Sixers All-Star who spends nearly all of his off time in Los Angeles and would add a much-needed playmaking dimension to the Clippers. But regardless of the other pieces involved in a potential deal, would Leonard want to team up with Simmons after the latter’s disastrous postseason? Is that a deal the Sixers would want to make, when league sources say they’re also hoping for an opportunity to land Lillard?