The Philadelphia 76ers, as is often the case, are at a crossroads. However, this one doesn’t feel as bleak as the intersection of the past. Tyrese Maxey has become a superstar and the team is winning games. Still, two of the top three players remain question marks to play every night, and their precarious injury status is unlikely to change throughout the year.
So the question quickly arises: With Maxey playing like an MVP, and the Sixers makeshift supporting cast producing more than anyone expected, should the Sixers go all in and pair Maxey with another star before this year’s trade deadline?
If this trade is available, yes, it should be. If there was ever a year to throw caution to the wind, it’s 2025-2026. Because it is windy. Throw that caution away.
Is there a win-now trade the Sixers can make?
The most obvious, of course, is acquiring Lauri Markkanen for some combination of Paul George, a young player (or two) and every first-round pick for the rest of the time. Markkanen has struggled early in the season and isn’t averaging 30 points per game all year, but he’s the perfect three-point shooter and forward who would do well next to Maxey.
Again, I don’t know if Maxey’s early play has caused the Sixers front office to start thinking about big, win-now trades. But I do think it should. Because what else are the Sixers waiting for? Maxey has arrived, VJ Edgecombe is ahead of schedule and the Eastern Conference is as weak as I can ever remember. Now is the time to strike. Kicking the can down the road would do nothing but alienate fans.
It doesn’t take a behemoth to win this conference, and these Sixers with Lauri Markkanen and some more center depth would be good enough to at least lift the burden of an ECF berth from this franchise.
The best way for the Sixers to show Tyrese Maxey that they care about building a competitive team around him is to actually does it. Claiming that this current roster, when healthy, could but that schedule is no longer sufficient. Let there be no doubt and don’t let the injury gods decide how this season ends, because they are clearly still mad at the Sixers franchise.
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