The Philadelphia 76ers’ disastrous season could result in them selling off some of their veteran pieces at the trade deadline. They are currently 19-28 on the season and 11th in the Eastern Conference, with numerous injuries to several players putting a damper on what was hoped to be a step in the right direction this year.
76ers’ Caleb Martin receiving a lot of trade interest
One of their newest veteran players is starting to receive a lot of interest on the trade market. According to HoopsHype’s Michael Scotto, the 76ers have received tons of calls regarding the availability of forward Caleb Martin.
“Numerous contenders have called to gauge Martin’s availability. Martin signed a four-year, $35 million deal with Philadelphia this past summer and has been a consistent 3-and-D swingman rotation player the past four years,” Scotto wrote.
Scotto added that Guerschon Yabusele, Andre Drummond, and Kelly Oubre Jr. are among the other veterans that teams are calling the 76ers about. For Martin, he is one of the more versatile players among that group and could be a huge difference-maker for several teams.
This year is Martin’s first with the 76ers, and he is averaging 9.1 points and 4.4 rebounds in 31 games. He had spent the previous three seasons with the Miami Heat, where he endured a breakout tenure with 9.6 points and 4.4 rebounds across those three season after not getting a ton of playing time with the Charlotte Hornets in his first two NBA seasons.
Martin could impact a number of contending teams
Martin provides a combination of athleticism and solid perimeter shooting. He is shooting 38% from beyond the arc on 2.8 three-point attempts per game this season, and has shown to have the capability to catch fire and light up the stat sheet.
Many contending teams who are in need of bench scoring could strongly benefit from adding Martin. His contract could complicate a trade for teams that are close to the second apron, meaning that they might need to sacrifice a rotation piece or two to take on Martin, but it could be a risk worth taking if he were to elevate a team’s title odds.
The deadline is set for Feb. 6, so the 76ers have less than a week to decide what they are going to do with Martin as well as the rest of their veteran players. Given their treacherous season, it will be interesting to see if they go into sell mode and retool the team around their superstars.
