The Philadelphia 76ers were desperate to improve their team around former MVP Joel Embiid and ascending star Tyrese Maxey.
It led to them handing a 35-year-old Paul George a monster four-year $211.5 million contract that quickly backfired in their faces.
George ended up playing in only half of Philadelphia's games last season, and had his lowest point per game output since his injury-shortened 2014-15 campaign. The Sixers may want to explore ways to get out of George's contract and use that salary to help them compete in 2025-26.
76ers Trade Idea Ships Out Paul George to Grizzlies
Ethen Hutton of Sports Illustrated recently proposed a trade that would ship George and his bloated contract to the Memphis Grizzlies.
Philadelphia 76ers receive: Kentavious Caldwell-Pope, Brandon Clarke, John Konchar, Cedric Coward, 2028 first-round pick
Memphis Grizzlies receive: Paul George, 2030 second-round pick (via POR)
"In this trade, Philadelphia’s front office mortgages another potential season of regression from its second-highest paid player for a crop of veteran assets and a future first-rounder from Memphis. Paul George’s deal proved to be one of the worst in the NBA last season, as the 35-year-old averaged 16.2 points per game, shooting 43% from the field and 35.8% from 3-point range," wrote Hutton.
"Philadelphia takes a step back from its win-now mentality, shifting its focus to the young core of Edgecombe, Jared McCain and Tyrese Maxey. With a healthy Joel Embiid, this core could elevate the 76ers to a competitive playoff team with cap flexibility across its new four players as opposed to George’s remaining $162 million on his deal."
While the Sixers would certainly be losing a contributor in George, the role players they get back in return would absolutely make up for him in the aggregate.
Kentavious Caldwell-Pope is a proven championship-caliber three-&-D guard, and Brandon Clarke would provide valuable depth in the front court.
Add in the future first-round pick, and it would be hard to find a better way for Philadelphia to improve their roster by trading George.