Rockets a facilitator in eventual Ben Simmons trade?

Windhorst: There’s been a number of rumors that have gone around the league in the last few weeks about Ben Simmons trade involving the Morey quarangular. That would be Philadelphia, Minnesota, the Kings, and the Rockets. … Let’s just say there has been a lot of discussion. I’ve had executives tell me that when Ben Simmons gets traded, it will include one or more of the quadrangular. Not that that’s where Ben Simmons would go, but they would probably be involved, because a Ben Simmons trade likely ends up being a multi-team deal. MacMahon: The Rockets have been much better lately, but they get ‘Hey, this is very early in a rebuild.’ So they’re trying to wedge their way in and get ammo for a rebuild, for sure.
Source: Ben DuBose @ Rockets Wire

What’s the buzz on Twitter?

The Ringer @ringernba
🏀 The Nets front office found the perfect role players to fit with KD
🏀 Why the Sixers should be patient with Ben Simmons
🏀 The magic has run out for the Wizards
#TheMismatch with @Chris Vernon and @Kevin O’Connor: open.spotify.com/episode/77YqYq… – 3:54 PM

Jake Madison @NOLAJake
Locked on Pelicans is live!
🏀 Pels reached out to Philly about Ben Simmons?
🏀 Pros and Cons of a Simmons deal
🏀 Zion Williamson has procedure
🎧 https://t.co/BETlDzBFEv
Watch on YouTube!
📺 https://t.co/4DBES9YyFq pic.twitter.com/mnQdCkiPZy – 3:30 PM

Jake Madison @NOLAJake
Locked on Pelicans is live!
🏀 Pels reached out to Philly about Ben Simmons?
🏀 Pros and Cons of a Simmons deal
🏀 Zion Williamson has procedure
🎧 https://t.co/BETlDzTh35
Watch on YouTube!
📺 https://t.co/4DBESaga40 pic.twitter.com/FzjUK3MJbD – 12:59 PM

Jake Madison @NOLAJake
Locked on Pelicans is live!
🏀 Pels reached out to Philly about Ben Simmons?
🏀 Pros and Cons of a Simmons deal
🏀 Zion Williamson has procedure
🎧 https://t.co/BETlDzTh35
Watch on YouTube!
📺 https://t.co/4DBESaga40 pic.twitter.com/dsXwcLAffF – 9:01 AM

Story continues

Dave Early @DavidEarly
“Coming up on [cable sports debate show], why the Sixers miss Ben Simmons more than the Nets miss both Kyrie AND James Harden!” – 8:43 PM

Sam Vecenie @Sam_Vecenie
I pitched two relatively creative 3-team trade ideas for Ben Simmons to @DaveDuFourNBA on the podcast yesterday. One of them involves Damian Lillard IF Portland decides to move him. One of them involves Indiana and Charlotte:
Watch us debate them here: youtube.com/watch?v=PCgbs8… – 7:02 PM

Ky Carlin @Ky_Carlin
I teamed up with @TheSanjeshSingh over at @Erik Gundersen to discuss why the Lakers having interest in Ben Simmons doesn’t make much sense #Sixers sixerswire.usatoday.com/lists/3-reason… via @SixersWire – 6:50 PM

Keith Pompey @PompeyOnSixers
While more players are now trade-eligible, the Sixers still don’t have a swift solution to the Ben Simmons saga inquirer.com/sixers/76ers-b… via @phillyinquirer – 7:44 AM

Sam Vecenie @Sam_Vecenie
GAME THEORY PODCAST: @DaveDuFourNBA joined me to preview the NBA’s Trade Season, now that the December 15 date has passed. Fake trades and talks about the Celtics, Ben Simmons, and plenty more
SUBSCRIBE: itunes.apple.com/us/podcast/gam… – 6:52 AM

Eric Pincus @EricPincus
Latest @BleacherReport Could Lakers Realistically Unload Russell Westbrook for a Star Like Ben Simmons? Piggybacking on reports from @Shams Charania and @Jake Fischer – if the Lakers inquired about Simmons, that means they dangled RW. Speculation ensues… bleacherreport.com/articles/29515… – 5:15 PM

Oleh Kosel @OlehKosel
Betting odds on Ben Simmons’ next team if traded, per @betonline_ag
Trail Blazers: 7/4
Pacers: 2/1
Pelicans: 5/2
Knicks: 3/1
Celtics: 5/1
Lakers: 7/1
Nets: 10/1
Raptors: 10/1
Pistons: 12/1
Timberwolves: 12/1
Kings: 14/1
Cavaliers: 16/1 – 2:44 PM

Quinton Mayo @RealQuintonMayo
What about Ben Simmons in Atlanta? – 1:58 PM

Jordan Schultz @Schultz_Report
#Sixers have received an influx of calls for Ben Simmons to get a jump on today, league sources say. One GM I spoke with remains pessimistic any deal gets done. “Daryl [Morey] is asking for the moon. I’m not sure he even wants to trade him right now.” – 12:02 PM

Michael Scotto @MikeAScotto
Sources: Pelicans discussed trading future first-round picks and pick swaps for Ben Simmons, I’m told.
More on the NBA trade market, including Jaylen Brown, Ben Simmons, Russell Westbrook, Jerami Grant and more with @Jake Fischer on the @Jorge Sierra podcast hoopshype.com/lists/nba-trad… – 11:01 AM

Keith Pompey @PompeyOnSixers
While more players are now trade-eligible, the #Sixers still don’t have a swift solution to the Ben Simmons saga inquirer.com/sixers/76ers-b… via @phillyinquirer – 10:48 AM

Derek Bodner @DerekBodnerNBA
ICYMI, today is December 15th, when a good portion of the league becomes trade eligible. As a result, the Ben Simmons discussions are, reportedly, heating up
Should you expect something to happen immediately? I have my doubts, which I explained on Monday: dailysix.com/sixers-week-in… – 10:28 AM

Serena Winters @SerenaWinters
The 𝑢𝑛𝑜𝑓𝑓𝑖𝑐𝑖𝑎𝑙 start to NBA trade season has officially begun!
@Derek Bodner joins me!
🏀Who would make a good trade partner?
🏀Best/worst case Ben Simmons scenarios
🏀Maximizing Maxey
🎧 on 🍎: https://t.co/I8J6eWkFmX
Everywhere else: https://t.co/JTqtPprnV1 pic.twitter.com/9Ls9TMGcJQ – 9:50 AM

More on this storyline

Ryan Ward: Fresh odds have surfaced on Ben Simmons regarding his next team. The Lakers are rumored to be interested in Simmons, but 5 teams have better odds, according to @betonline_ag: FAVORITE – Blazers: 7/4 Pacers: 2/1 Pelicans: 5/2 Knicks: 3/1 Celtics: 5/1 LAKERS: 7/1 -via Twitter @RyanWardLA / December 15, 2021

Jake Fischer: The only outgoing call I confirmed was to Philadelphia for Ben Simmons… When I got the information that they called about Ben, the conversation pretty much was, “We’re interested in Ben. How would we get there?” The obvious solution is Russell Westbrook. He’s not a player on that Sixers list that they have. -via HoopsHype / December 15, 2021

Jake Fischer: They don’t have to move Ben just to move him and not waste a year of Embiid’s prime. They really believe that if they move Simmons for anything less than they value him, they’ll be sacrificing multiple years of Embiid’s prime for not maximizing Simmons as a trade asset. Their ultimate goal still remains to have Simmons get back on the court and join them because that was their goal I think moving into the offseason anyway. Simmons became a trade candidate when he requested it. I think the Sixers were definitely open to moving him for someone like Damian Lillard, Beal, or Harden. Short of that, they believe Ben is their best chance right now and the best possible addition to get this team back to where they were last year as the top team in the East. -via HoopsHype / December 15, 2021

source