The Fed’s Inflation Miscalculations Risk Hurting the Poor: El-Erian

The Philadelphia 76ers’ standoff with Ben Simmons is only getting uglier.

Simmons told the team late last month that he “wasn’t mentally ready to play,” according to ESPN’s Adrian Wojnarowski. However, The Athletic’s Shams Charania reported Monday that the Sixers have “become increasingly irritated with Simmons’ lack of providing further clarity on the matter to them.”

The Sixers began to fine him again last Thursday and “plan to continue fining him until he cooperates with team physicians on his mental health and fulfills other basketball-related obligations,” Wojnarowski reported Friday. Simmons did meet with a “team-recommended medical specialist to discuss his mental health” on Monday, according to Wojnarowski, but it’s still unclear when—or if—he’ll be ready to return to play in Philadelphia.

The NBA’s collective bargaining agreement prevents teams from withholding salary for a player’s failure to render services “if such failure has been caused by the player’s mental disability,” which means the league office and the National Basketball Players Association is all but certain to get involved in this escalating feud. In the meantime, the Sixers need to devise a backup plan for how to end their standoff with Simmons.

Team president Daryl Morey has been adamant about refusing to budge on his asking price of a “difference-maker” for Simmons in any trade. During a radio appearance with 97.5 The Fanatic’s Mike Missanelli last month, Morey warned Sixers fans to “buckle in” and said he’s willing to drag it out for the remaining four years of Simmons’ contract if needed.

“This is not a day-to-day,” he said. “This is like, every day, we’re gonna expect Ben Simmons to be back here, or we’re trading him for a difference-maker. There’s no other outcome that doesn’t materially hurt our chance to win the championship in Joel Embiid’s prime.”

Morey wants to either convince Simmons to return to the team or trade him for a difference-maker. But what happens if neither option materializes by the Feb. 10 trade deadline? What’s the plan then?

The Sixers have not-so-quietly been lusting after Damian Lillard for months, particularly once he began waffling about his future in Portland this offseason. However, he recently reaffirmed his commitment to the Trail Blazers, which seems to close that door for now.

“I’ve attached myself to the history of this organization and this city,” Lillard told Chris Haynes of Yahoo Sports. “Just in thinking about how long it’s been since they’ve won, I want to be a part of that coming to an end. I want people to say, ‘When Dame came through here, he rode all the way out for us through the good and the bad. He was ready to sink with the ship.’”

Bradley Beal and Zach LaVine are the other top-end trade targets who immediately come to mind, as both can become free agents next summer. Had the Washington Wizards or Chicago Bulls gotten off to a slow start this season, they might have entertained the idea of trading Beal or LaVine rather than risk losing them for nothing in July.

Instead, both teams made major upgrades this offseason that have propelled them to hot starts. There’s still no guarantee that Beal or LaVine will re-sign with the Wizards and Bulls, but those teams have likely increased the probability of retaining their respective stars. It’s difficult to imagine either one getting flipped for Simmons unless something drastic changes between now and the trade deadline.

If the NBA has taught us anything in recent years, it’s that the next disgruntled superstar is never far behind. Some star could unexpectedly emerge as a trade candidate at any minute, particularly as teams suss out whether they have realistic playoff or championship aspirations this offseason.

One such option seemingly emerged Monday, as Charania reported the Boston Celtics had “expressed interest” in Simmons and “engaged in conversations” with the Sixers. He noted “any potential Simmons deal with the Celtics would have to include All-Star forward Jaylen Brown,” although the two teams have made “no traction as of yet.”

However, a league source told Mark Murphy of the Boston Herald that the Celtics hadn’t discussed a Simmons trade with the Sixers. Multiple league sources were “adamant” to Brian Robb of MassLive that the Celtics “have no interest” in trading Brown, either.

At the moment, Morey’s desire for a difference-maker appears to be a major impediment to a Simmons trade. On Monday, Bleacher Report’s Jake Fischer reported “there’s belief among rival executives and league personnel that Simmons could even remain on the Sixers roster” past the trade deadline.

If no team presents the Sixers with an enticing offer for Simmons between now and then, Morey will have a major decision to make. Is he willing to risk throwing away a year of Embiid’s prime just to draw a line in the sand?

The Sixers are pushing to gain clarity regarding Simmons’ timeline to return to play. But even if he does eventually decide he’s mentally ready to rejoin the team, there’s no guarantee that they’ll get the same player who’s earned three straight All-Star nods.

“Simmons has mentally checked out as a member of the 76ers,” Charania reported in late September, “meaning whether or not he ever appears in Philadelphia this season the organization may never again receive the same dedicated player.”

Simmons and his camp are trying to give Morey a risk-reward equation that has no clear answer. What’s worse for both the Sixers’ short- and long-term outlook: trading him for less than his perceived value, or potentially wasting a roster spot and $33 million in salary-cap space all season?

Despite the Simmons cloud hanging over their heads all season, the Sixers have gotten off to a shockingly strong 8-4 start. A COVID-19 outbreak has sidelined Tobias Harris, Joel Embiid, Matisse Thybulle and Isaiah Joe within the past week, but the likes of Seth Curry, Tyrese Maxey, Furkan Korkmaz, Andre Drummond and Georges Niang have largely thrived in place of them.

It’s still early in the season, and the Sixers should only get healthier from here. They don’t need to make a decision on Simmons tomorrow. But if they don’t make progress with him over the next month or two, it’s fair to wonder how far Morey is willing to drag this saga out.

The Sixers currently are a +1800 to win this year’s title, per FanDuel Sportsbook, which ranks eighth leaguewide. FiveThirtyEight gives them an 18 percent chance of making it to the NBA Finals this year and an 8 percent chance of winning the title.

“If you’ve got even a 5 percent chance to win the title — and that group includes a very small number of teams every year — you’ve gotta be focused all on winning the title,” Morey told Zach Lowe (then of Grantland) back in 2012 when he was still the general manager of the Houston Rockets.

There’s no easy solution to the Simmons standoff at this point. How they proceed over the next few months may largely determine whether the Sixers are able to make good on Morey’s 5 percent theory this year, though.

Source: https://therealpreneur.com/business/the-feds-inflation-miscalculations-risk-hurting-the-poor/