Boston Celtics: A multi-team De’Aaron Fox blockbuster Cs could consider

Though we may only be just about a month into the 2021-22 campaign, there are quite a number of teams out there that are scrambling to make a few changes to their player personnel, and the Boston Celtics may be one of them.

Based on recent rumblings the C’s front office contacted the Philadelphia 76ers in regard to the availability of their franchise point guard, Ben Simmons.

A sound inquiry indeed, for we believe the All-Star would be a tremendous addition for the boys in green and think he could even save the team from enduring yet another underwhelming season should he be attained at the right price.

However, ultimately, General Manager Daryl Morey’s reported asking price was a tad bit too steep for the shamrocks, as it was stated that any deal would have to involve All-Star wing, Jaylen Brown, heading back to the City of Brotherly Love.

Because of this, unsurprisingly it appears as though Stevens’ talks involving Simmons have been put on hold however, this is not to say the guard’s chances of being moved at some point this season have diminished.

In fact, since these rumors between the Boston Celtics and 76ers have died down, other reports across the league have surfaced to suggest that we may not be too far off from seeing Simmons switching zip codes.

According to a recent report from Sam Amick (subscription required), a long-time favorite target of the Sixers, De’Aaron Fox, could potentially be on his way towards being shopped at some point this season, as it is presumed that his fit alongside backcourt mate, Tyrese Haliburton, is a growing concern for the Sacramento Kings:

"No issue has been more glaring than the struggles of franchise centerpiece De’Aaron Fox, who has had a major decline in production (25.2 points per game last season to 19.8 this season) and efficiency (47.7 percent overall to 41 this season; 32.2 percent from 3 to 23). His comfort level in the starting lineup with second-year guard Tyrese Haliburton is, it would seem, fast becoming an early concern."

The significance of this is that during the offseason, Philadelphia and Sacramento had short-lived talks involving both of these players being swapped but, ultimately, the Kings pulled away, as they had high hopes for their 23-year-old point guard.

Now, fast forward a few months later and we see Sactown significantly underwhelming to start the year, boasting a sub-.500 record of just 6-8, while having questions pertaining to whether they made the right choice of shelling out max money to Fox circulating around their head.

While it may not be the most likely scenario at this point in time, should he continue to underperform while the cheaper Haliburton continues to thrive, the Kings’ front office could theoretically look to make the move for Simmons this time around and, should this happen, we at HH believe the Boston Celtics should look to be involved.

Often times with a trade of this magnitude, multiple teams are used in order to help better distribute the money and the Cs could be used as a sound third squad to help expedite this process, and this trade package we’ve come up with could prove to be beneficial for each party involved:

Obviously, this deal sees a ton of moving pieces, but easily the biggest aspect in this exchange is the swapping of De’Aaron Fox and Ben Simmons.

With Fox, Philadelphia gets a high-end replacement at the one who quite possibly could mesh better both within Doc Rivers’s system as well as alongside franchise centerpiece, Joel Embiid.

A much more willing scorer than Simmons — which ultimately played a huge part in the team’s downfall during last year’s postseason run –, the fifth-year veteran finds himself boasting career averages of 18.3 points, 6.4 assists, 3.5 rebounds, and 1.4 steals per game on 45 percent shooting from the floor, all while being arguably the fastest player currently in the NBA.

If he’s been able to be this productive whilst suiting up for the lowly Kings over these past several years, imagine how effective he could ultimately be on the more properly run Sixers with a better supporting cast and a much better head coach.

As for the Kings, they bring on an already established All-NBA player in Simmons who, despite his documented offensive shortcomings, is still just 25-years-old (just two years Fox’s elder) and can be slotted into virtually every position from the one all the way down to the five.

Now, while parting with their former fifth overall pick may be a bit of a difficult decision to make, bringing on a player of Simmons’ ilk could wind up proving to be well worth it, considering the fact that he’s already a perennial All-Star & Defensive Player of the Year candidate and is the only player currently in the league outside of Luka Doncic who is averaging at least 15 points, 7.5 assists, and 7.5 boards for his career.

On top of all this, we see Grant Williams heading to Philadelphia to simply help out their floor spacing (on the season the third-year pro is shooting at a 41 percent clip from deep) while the Kings bring on Josh Richardson for his 3-and-D prowess, Aaron Nesmith for his potential to serve as a building block alongside their would-be core of Simmons, Haliburton, and Davion Mitchell and a top-10 protected future first-round pick from the Boston Celtics.

And speaking of the Boston Celtics, we then see the franchise bringing on their prized jewel of a return asset in veteran forward, Harrison Barnes.

A popular trade candidate for the Cs over the past two seasons, the 29-year-old would be a sensational add for this reeling team what with the fact that he plays a position of need and has only been excelling on both ends of the floor these past few years.

off to yet another stellar season with Sacramento, Barnes is finding himself boasting per-game averages of 20.9 points, 8.1 rebounds, 2.3 assists, and 1.1 steals per game on nearly 50 percent shooting from the floor and 41 percent shooting from deep.

Slotting him into the starting lineup would instantaneously give the likes of Jayson Tatum and Jaylen Brown (once he returns to action) a much-needed tertiary scoring option as well as a trusty defensive presence who would allow the shamrocks to rid themselves of the dual-big lineup, relegating either Al Horford or Robert Williams to the bench as a high-usage reserve.

All in all, this package seems to be equally beneficial for all parties involved.

For the Philadelphia 76ers, they put an end to the drama-fest that has been the Ben Simmons saga these past few months and, in turn, swap him out for a younger and cheaper point guard option in De’Aaron Fox while also nabbing a sound and much-needed floor spacer in Grant Williams.

For the Sacramento Kings, they lose out on the star-potential player that is Fox, but get back an already established star in Simmons along with another potential building foundational piece in Aaron Nesmith and a future first to help build towards their future.

And, for the Boston Celtics, they wind up parting ways with a few assets, yes, but end up getting back a true upgrade at their weakest position within the rotation in Harrison Barnes without giving away any of their true key contributors.

While there may be an argument as to who ends up with the best return package out of this bunch, it’s inarguable that, at the end of the day, each team winds up benefiting rather considerably from this multi-team exchange.