New reports indicate that the Philadelphia 76ers are willing to give up Matisse Thybulle and the No. 23 pick for Miami Heat forward P.J. Tucker.
When the Philadelphia 76ers lost out to the Miami Heat in the Eastern Conference Semifinals, Jimmy Butler made sure to remind Philadelphia of what they were missing.
“Tobias Harris over me?” Butler asked incredulously, a joke which has only become more amusing since the Sixers would prefer Butler, or anyone, over Harris at this point.
Butler-Harris comparisons aside, Joel Embiid made it abundantly clear what he wanted on his team. Not only did he wish Butler was still his teammate, but he eyed another Heat standout: forward P.J. Tucker.
“He’s just physical and he’s tough, and they have a few of those guys,” Embiid said at the time. “Since I’ve been here, I’d be lying if I said we’ve had those types of guys. Nothing against what we have, it’s just the truth. We never have P.J. Tucker. That’s really what I’m trying say.”
“I think physicality, once you get to the playoffs or the later rounds, you need that,” he continued. “You need those guys that are really tough.”
At last, Embiid and the 76ers might finally have P.J. Tucker within their grasp. According to Keith Pompey of The Philadelphia Inquirer, there’s “mutual interest” between Tucker and the Sixers.
And how might the Sixers finagle a deal with the 37-year-old veteran? Through a three-team trade that would deal away Matisse Thybulle and the No. 23 pick in the 2022 NBA Draft.
Sources confirm that 76ers are “pursuing” P.J. Tucker
While Embiid and Daryl Morey may want the former Houston Rocket, the lacking cap space in Philadelphia obstructs a simple free agency pickup with current availability.
Sources told Pompey that the Sixers want to offer Tucker $30 million for a three-year deal, but the 76ers don’t have that kind of cap space at the moment, hence the three-team trade to deal away Thybulle and a first-rounder. Sources claim the third team involved would be expected to give up a first-rounder as well in order to finalize the deal.
Of course, it’s considered tampering to host these kinds of discussions before free agency opens up, and a sources close to the 76ers has denied the chatter surrounding the team.
But come June 30, Philadelphia may see Matisse Thybulle shipped away in favor of P.J. Tucker, and Joel Embiid will at least get one of his desired Heat teammates.