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Golden State Warriors: D’Angelo Russell for Ben Simmons is a win-win

By Nathan Beighle

PHILADELPHIA, PA - APRIL 13: D'Angelo Russell #1 of the Brooklyn Nets shoots a three-pointer against Ben Simmons #25 of the Philadelphia 76ers during Game One of Round One of the 2019 NBA Playoffs on April 13, 2019 at the Wells Fargo Center in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania NOTE TO USER: User expressly acknowledges and agrees that, by downloading and/or using this Photograph, user is consenting to the terms and conditions of the Getty Images License Agreement. Mandatory Copyright Notice: Copyright 2019 NBAE (Photo by Jesse D. Garrabrant/NBAE via Getty Images)
PHILADELPHIA, PA - APRIL 13: D'Angelo Russell #1 of the Brooklyn Nets shoots a three-pointer against Ben Simmons #25 of the Philadelphia 76ers during Game One of Round One of the 2019 NBA Playoffs on April 13, 2019 at the Wells Fargo Center in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania NOTE TO USER: User expressly acknowledges and agrees that, by downloading and/or using this Photograph, user is consenting to the terms and conditions of the Getty Images License Agreement. Mandatory Copyright Notice: Copyright 2019 NBAE (Photo by Jesse D. Garrabrant/NBAE via Getty Images) /
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A swap between the Golden State Warriors and Philadelphia 76ers involving D’Angelo Russell and Ben Simmons is gaining steam. But, why?

The Golden State Warriors haven’t gone out on a limb and said they wanted to trade D’Angelo Russell. The 2019 All-Star wants to be a Warrior for the remaining three years on his contract. That may not happen.

Who might the Warriors trade Russell for?

Well, look no further than Philadelphia 76ers’ point guard Ben Simmons. Simmons is a non-shooting, lengthy point guard that hasn’t quite developed into the all-out superstar that Philadelphia had dreamed of.

While both guards still have plenty of room to grow, the idea of a straight-up swap has been tossed around by media. Even if it doesn’t have any true backing, it, at the very least, is an interesting concept.

From the Warriors standpoint, they would only trade Russell to get a haul which included solving their backcourt woes.

Simmons would do that.

A Simmons-Curry-Thompson one through three would give the Warriors a dynamic defensive backcourt, something they wouldn’t have with Russell. However, losing Russell may hurt the team’s offense as he’s an excellent court spacer, averaging over two threes per game.

With Curry and Thompson to go with Green, the Warriors are typically more concerned about lining their defense with capable pieces. They have the offensive weapons so it’d be interesting to see if they’d consider this.

For Philadelphia, they just need a change.

Realistically, the Sixers should be the best team in the East. Sadly, Al Horford, Joel Embiid and others just haven’t meshed as well as the front office would like. Could Simmons be the odd man out?

Simmons does limit the spacing significantly, still not yet comfortable taking threes consistently. That’s a problem, and it could hamper their offense. Add Russell in, and you have all the opportunity to create a dominant offensive powerhouse.

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It seems like it could be a win-win scenario, but it’s still not one I’d expected to be done.

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