On Thursday, the Los Angeles Lakers traded Talen Horton-Tucker and Stanley Johnson to the Utah Jazz for Patrick Beverley. In doing so, they thwarted Sixers team president Daryl Morey from acquiring yet another former Houston Rocket who once played alongside James Harden. (We’ll just have to settle for P.J. Tucker and Danuel House Jr. instead.)
The Sixers’ acquisition of De’Anthony Melton on draft night would have made Beverley somewhat redundant, which perhaps explains why they didn’t try to beat out the Lakers’ middling offer. Now that Kevin Durant has rescinded his trade request from the Brooklyn Nets—at least for the time being—business may be about to open back up league-wide, which could open other options.