NBA Trade Rumors: Will the Philadelphia 76ers Trade Andre Iguodala?
It's been clear throughout this season that Andre Iguodala no longer wants to be a Philadelphia 76er. Both Iguodala and the 76ers are moving in different directions and aren't included in one another's future plans. The 76ers have been trying to rid of Iguodala for quite some time but have yet to pull the trigger.
Dubbed a "franchise player," Iguodala sure hasn't performed as one. Iguodala's presence as team leader has been marred by poor, inconsistent play. At this point in time, they would be best off moving Iguodala for more young talent to build with.
Draft picks are also key and the 76ers need as many of them as they can get. Building through the draft is a good way to start. The organization feels as if they did that last year by drafting Evan Turner with the second overall pick in the NBA draft. With another lottery pick in 2011, the 76ers would be sitting nicely.
Most teams build with/around a "big man" which is the next draft route that the 76ers may need to take. The coming draft is highlighted by such "big men." Notables include Baylor's Perry Jones, Kentucky's Terrence Jones and Ohio State's Jared Sullinger. All of these players are freshman, all of them are also 6'8" and taller.
Another problem is that Iguodala will be 27 soon and has yet to win anything at all. These are faltering expectations for both parties that remain unresolved. The longer Iguodala sticks around, the harder it will be to establishing a winning attitude.
Quite frankly, the 76ers are unable to move forward and win with Iguodala on the team. They've resorted to building around youngsters Jrue Holiday and Evan Turner. Now this is the direction that they must continue to take to form a winning foundation in Philadelphia.
Though as of late the 76ers appear to more or less be gelling as a team and have played much better. Could this alone halt the progress of a potential trade? For now, it certainly doesn't make the process easier. How do you change things when they're going right?
Iguodala's hefty contract is a major reason why he needs to be traded. The issue is that 14.2 points per game does not comprehensibly translate into $12.3 million. Nothing in the world could possibly make sense of this, not even Sixers' management.
Needless to say, the Sixers are immensely overpaying their supposed "No. 1 guy." He's played with little, if any motivation this season and knows that a change of scenery is necessary.
Only time will tell how this will play out. For now though, the 76ers are somehow stringing together wins.
