76ers Stand Pat: Good Move or Bad Move?

The Philadelphia 76ers didn't make a move at Thursday night's trade deadline, but they did lose their second game in a row since the All-Star break.

They now sit a game above .500 at 27-26, good for seventh in the East. Right now, this team is not good enough to win an NBA Championship, let alone get to an Eastern Conference Final.

So did they make the right move in making no moves at the deadline?

The main piece of trade bait the Sixers had to offer was point guard extraordinaire Andre Miller, an unrestricted free agent after this season. Besides the Jermaine O'Neal-for-Shawn Marion trade, there were no big-time deals made in the NBA.

But what about Amar'e Stoudemire? The Suns were reportedly shipping him, but no trade came about.

In order for the Sixers to trade for a player of Stoudemire's caliber, they would have needed to trade Andre Miller (who makes $10.3 million this year) and his expiring contract along with one of their bright, young players in either Thaddeus Young or Marreese Speights.

So, in possibly acquiring Stoudemire, which would have been farfetched anyway, the Sixers would suddenly be without a point guard and young depth at forward, they would receive a player owed nearly $16 million next year before becoming a free agent and one who plays the same position as Elton Brand (aka the injured $80 million investment).

But enough talk about Stoudemire because he was probably never going to leave Phoenix in the first place.

The Sixers could have benefited by trading for a potent three-point shooter, something Philly lacks. They are at the bottom of the NBA, making only four long balls a game, and have converted just 32 percent of their three-point attempts this season.

Trading Miller for a three-point shooter would have put a hole at the point guard position. I like Lou Williams as a backup and starting point guard of the future, but he doesn't draw the foul or finish at the rim quite like Miller does.

You can also make the argument that you can let Miller walk after this year, giving the Sixers some flexibility to sign some free agents in the offseason.

Some notable free agent guards that the Sixers could be interested in—Ben Gordon, Quentin Richardson, Hedo Turkoglu, or even former Sixer Kyle Korver. All can shoot the three-ball and would be welcomed additions to a young team on the rise.