Wolves’ Sachin Gupta all in on acquiring Ben Simmons

Darren Wolfson: Sachin Gupta wants Ben Simmons. The same hurdles remain, but can he now be more creative on three-team scenarios? That still seems to be the key. But make not mistake: Gupta is all in on acquiring Ben Simmons.
Source: Spotify

What’s the buzz on Twitter?

Candace Buckner @CandaceDBuckner
Good morning! I wrote a column about Ben Simmons and who gets to be called a ‘superstar’ in the NBA:
washingtonpost.com/sports/2021/09… – 9:08 AM

Derek Bodner @DerekBodnerNBA
Still completely slack-jawed at Doc Rivers comparing Ben Simmons and his representatives to Trump supporting, Big Lie denialists days before training camp starts, as they’re in the middle of trying to convince Simmons to come back and join the team.
Sixers always gonna Sixer. – 8:02 AM

Harrison Wind @HarrisonWind
What we learned with the Nuggets today:
– Tarik Black signed with Denver for training camp.
– Nikola Jokic is the 6th best player in the NBA, per ESPN
– Ben Simmons was spotted at Casa Bonita in Lakewood last night. Witnesses said he only lasted 15 seconds in Black Bart’s Cave – 9:27 PM

Christopher Hine @ChristopherHine
For Sunday’s paper (but published online now!) I wrote about what the events of this week might signal about the Marc Lore/Rodriguez tenure and what this might mean more immediately for the Timberwolves pursuit of Ben Simmons: startribune.com/gersson-rosas-… – 4:28 PM

CBS NBA @CBSSportsNBA
Doc Rivers makes a Donald Trump comparison while discussing Ben Simmons’ situation with 76ers
cbssports.com/nba/news/doc-r… – 4:03 PM

Jon Krawczynski @JonKrawczynski
Assessing Timberwolves fallout after Gersson Rosas’ dismissal, from ownership’s role to a potential Ben Simmons trade
via @TheAthletic theathletic.com/2846535/2021/0… – 3:43 PM

The Ringer @ringernba
New #TheMismatch!
Join @Chris Vernon and @Kevin O’Connor as they discuss the front office upheaval in Minnesota, Ben Simmons’s potential to sit out training camp, and more!
therin.gr/75QTfYA – 3:37 PM

Henry Abbott @TrueHoop
On BRING IT IN @David Thorpe and @jarodhector on Ben Simmons as an actual human being truehoop.com/p/bring-it-in-… Really recommend taking a minute to read David’s free story “Healing Ben Simmons” truehoop.com/p/healing-ben-… pic.twitter.com/xIHf2ivzcY – 2:18 PM

Marc Stein @TheSteinLine
Quiet final week of the NBA offseason? Yeah, right.
The latest in Philly, Minnesota and more all feature in my This Week In Basketball column freshly sent to inboxes worldwide: marcstein.substack.com/p/weekend-dime…
Sign up to get all the Ben Simmons coverage direct: marcstein.substack.com – 1:40 PM

Brandon Rahbar @BrandonRahbar
Sam Presti emphasizes that the Thunder won’t take any shortcuts in this rebuilding process.
In other words, go ahead and trash your Karl-Anthony Towns and Ben Simmons trade machine results. – 11:21 AM

Brian Robb @BrianTRobb
Could Celtics get involved in potential Ben Simmons trade as a third team? | Winning Plays w/ @Rich Levine powered by @BetUS_Official pscp.tv/w/dBvCGHR3LTIw… – 8:30 PM

Gerald Bourguet @GeraldBourguet
How the Suns could get involved in Ben Simmons trade talks as a third party – bit.ly/3o0RDH9 via @PHNX_Suns pic.twitter.com/60gPrntAWS – 8:02 PM

Chris Fedor @ChrisFedor
How much is too much for Ben Simmons? That’s one of the many complicated questions #Cavs are asking when it comes to a potential trade
cleveland.com/cavs/2021/09/s… – 4:56 PM

Ky Carlin @Ky_Carlin
On today’s episode of The Bell Ringer, I welcome @Nick_Friar with me to dissect the Ben Simmons trade drama as well as look at some proposals centered around him #Sixers sixerswire.usatoday.com/2021/09/23/bel… via @SixersWire – 4:48 PM

Tom Moore @TomMoorePhilly
#NBA column: Here’s what the #Sixers really hope for regarding Ben Simmons (for subscribers): bit.ly/3kxb2gD pic.twitter.com/CLLW8PR2fl – 3:30 PM

Jonathan Feigen @Jonathan_Feigen
New #Rockets at #TXSN – John Wall for Ben Simmons? Why trade could work but probably won’t ift.tt/3u6Vtzw – 3:18 PM

Austin Kent @AustinKent
Gilbert Arenas knows what’s up. I don’t think that you force this EXACT system in Philly, but I do think there’s a ton of room for optimization and growth with Ben Simmons. Probably elsewhere.
(Just now have to ALSO fix the confidence issues) pic.twitter.com/tI6L2nBz51 – 3:02 PM

Chris Biderman @TheWarriorsWire
The NBA is fining Warriors owner Joe Lacob $50K for violating the league’s anti-tampering rule regarding his comments about Ben Simmons. warriorswire.usatoday.com/2021/09/22/nba… – 1:00 PM

Tom Moore @TomMoorePhilly
#NBA column: The #Sixers are planning to hold onto Ben Simmons, try to convince him to report to camp/preseson and play; Plus, source says Simmons & agent Rich Paul requested trade in late June ‘right after’ end of 2020-21 season (for subscribers): bit.ly/3kxb2gD pic.twitter.com/ZQdGHzXZf3 – 12:15 PM

Chris Fedor @ChrisFedor
Should #Cavs go all-in on a Ben Simmons trade? Do they even have the pieces to make it work?
cleveland.com/cavs/2021/09/s… – 12:10 PM

Gerald Bourguet @GeraldBourguet
The Suns should get involved in Ben Simmons trade talks, but not in the way you might think. My latest for @PHNX_Suns: bit.ly/3o0RDH9 – 11:03 AM

Justin Garcia @tmjgarcia
How much more can Giannis improve and how much does the Ben Simmons situation impact the East?
Joined @Kane Pitman on the latest @lockedonbucks …with video
youtu.be/xdaVmNJ8yB4 – 9:34 AM

Kane Pitman @KanePitman
New @lockedonbucks w/@Justin Garcia 🦌
How much improvement does Giannis have left? How will his game evolve next? How does the Ben Simmons situation impact Milwaukee?
🎙️ linktr.ee/LockedOnBucks
📺 youtu.be/xdaVmNJ8yB4 pic.twitter.com/DEu4yO53B1 – 8:00 AM

Chris Broussard @Chris_Broussard
Join us on @FTFonFS1 at 7:30 am ET with @getnickwright @kevinwildes @JennaWolfe & yours truly. We talk Justin Fields, Tom Brady, Ben Simmons & more.@FS1 – 7:18 AM

Tom Moore @TomMoorePhilly
#NBA column: The #Sixers are moving away from trying to trade Ben Simmons in favor of convincing him to report to camp & play for Philly. Plus, what will #76ers do about the $8.25 million payment that Simmons is owed October 1 (for subscribers)? bit.ly/3kxb2gD pic.twitter.com/LH7SOHMiMO – 6:45 AM

Chris Sheridan @sheridanhoops
Will be interesting to see what impact the promotion of Sachin Gupta has on additional moves the #Timberwolves might make before the start of training camp. Entire #NBA on pins and needles awaiting Ben Simmons resolution. No reason why Gupta could not become involved in some way. – 5:32 AM

Chris Biderman @TheWarriorsWire
The NBA is fining Warriors owner Joe Lacob $50K for violating the league’s anti-tampering rule regarding his comments about Ben Simmons. warriorswire.usatoday.com/2021/09/22/nba… – 4:00 AM

Kane Pitman @KanePitman
New @lockedonbucks w/@Justin Garcia 🦌
How much improvement does Giannis have left? How will his game evolve next? How does the Ben Simmons situation impact Milwaukee?
YouTube 📺 youtu.be/xdaVmNJ8yB4 pic.twitter.com/8phfbnZFnq – 12:44 AM

Tom Moore @TomMoorePhilly
#NBA column: #Sixers are planning to hold onto Ben Simmons, try to convince him to report to camp and play; Plus, source says Simmons and agent Rich Paul requested trade in late June ‘right after’ end of 2020-21 season (for subscribers): bit.ly/3kxb2gD pic.twitter.com/ywoanFtkpw – 11:55 PM

John Gonzalez @JohnGonzalez
Can’t stop thinking about Joe Lacob getting a tampering fine for being like “Ben Simmons?…eh, nah” – 11:20 PM

Tom Moore @TomMoorePhilly
#NBA column: The #Sixers are moving away from trying to trade Ben Simmons in favor of convincing him to report to camp & play. Plus, source says Simmons requested a trade in Chicago ‘right after’ end of the 2020-21 season in late June (for subscribers): bit.ly/3kxb2gD pic.twitter.com/PF4fh6h1ei – 9:00 PM

Tom Haberstroh @tomhaberstroh
🏀 HABERSHOW w/@Amin Elhassan 🏀
Jamal Crawford (@JCrossover) hops on to talk the TWolves stunner and the Ben Simmons holdout. Jamal then crushes trivia about his career and drops a zillion untold stories along the way.
🍎: apple.co/3zzl6dx
✳️: spoti.fi/3EFM2Mi pic.twitter.com/1nBqI8nXK3 – 8:49 PM

Chris Biderman @TheWarriorsWire
The NBA is fining Warriors owner Joe Lacob $50K for violating the league’s anti-tampering rule regarding his comments about Ben Simmons. warriorswire.usatoday.com/2021/09/22/nba… – 7:51 PM

CBS NBA @CBSSportsNBA
Warriors owner Joe Lacob fined $50,000 by NBA for tampering after downplaying possible Ben Simmons trade
cbssports.com/nba/news/warri… – 6:14 PM

Marc J. Spears @MarcJSpears
The NBA says it has fined Golden State Warriors Governor Joe Lacob $50,000 for violating the league’s anti-tampering rule. The fine is in response to comments by Lacob in a September 21 news article regarding the Philadelphia 76ers’ Ben Simmons. – 5:54 PM

Adam Zagoria @AdamZagoria
The NBA announced today that it has fined Golden State Warriors Governor Joe Lacob $50,000 for violating the league’s anti-tampering rule. The fine is in response to comments by Lacob in a September 21 news article regarding the Philadelphia 76ers’ Ben Simmons. – 5:53 PM

Justin Grasso @JGrasso_
#NBA announces that #Warriors owner Joe Lacob has been fined $50,000 for violating the league’s anti-tampering rule by making comments regarding Ben Simmons #Sixers – 5:52 PM

Jeff Zillgitt @JeffZillgitt
NBA fines Warriors owner Joe Laconia $50,000 for “for violating the league’s anti-tampering rule. The fine is in response to comments by Lacob in a September 21 news article regarding the Philadelphia 76ers’ Ben Simmons.” – 5:48 PM

Tim Bontemps @TimBontemps
The NBA announced it has fined Joe Lacob $50,000 for his comments about Ben Simmons earlier this week. – 5:47 PM

Kyle Neubeck @KyleNeubeck
Warriors owner Joe Lacob was fined $50,000 for talking about Ben Simmons and violating the league’s anti-tampering policy, NBA says – 5:46 PM

Shams Charania @ShamsCharania
Warriors owner Joe Lacob has been fined $50,000 for violating anti-tampering rule regarding comments on 76ers’ Ben Simmons. – 5:46 PM

Marc Stein @TheSteinLine
Joe Lacob was just fined $50,000 by the NBA for his comments about Ben Simmons. – 5:46 PM

Tom Moore @TomMoorePhilly
#NBA column: Source: #Sixers planning to hold onto Ben Simmons, try to convince him to report to camp and play; Simmons requested trade ‘right after’ end of 2020-21 season (for subscribers): bit.ly/3kxb2gD #76ers pic.twitter.com/PCAT3dpCkt – 5:00 PM

Sirius XM NBA @SiriusXMNBA
Multiple reports say Ben Simmons won’t play for the 76ers again.
@Frank Isola tells @Brian Scalabrine this shows “The Process” didn’t work in Philadelphia. pic.twitter.com/tuh8moIxYu – 4:30 PM

Duane Rankin @DuaneRankin
Like everyone else, I’m watching the Ben Simmons situation.
Craziness, but it made me think back to the first saw him play in person when he was at LSU.
To go from that confident kid on his way to being the top pick to now not reporting to 76ers training camp?
Craziness. pic.twitter.com/W4SkeDyFH4 – 4:29 PM

The Jump @_Talkin_NBA
If you were Ben Simmons, would you sit out a season until you are traded to your desired destination?
#NBATwitter – 3:53 PM

Adam Spolane @AdamSpolane
Kinda feels like A-Rod wanted Ben Simmons at any cost and Gersson disagreed – 3:40 PM

Tom Moore @TomMoorePhilly
#NBA source: The #Sixers‘ goal isn’t to increase Ben Simmons’ trade value by him reporting but for Simmons to come back and play this season. Also, Simmons and agent Rich Paul initially asked for a trade in Chicago “right after” the 2020-21 season ended. – 2:11 PM

Chris Broussard @Chris_Broussard
Will Aaron Rodgers repeat as MVP? Should the Sixers wait to trade Ben Simmons? Why do the Patriots get a pass for cheating? & more! Guests: @EphraimSalaam @RandyMueller_ @martinweiss
Catch us live weeknights 7-10p ET on @FoxSportsRadio & @iHeartRadio podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/the… – 1:59 PM

Dane Moore @DaneMooreNBA
You’re telling on yourself if you think John Wall for Ben Simmons is a realistic trade framework – 12:49 PM

Emiliano Carchia @Sportando
Doc Rivers hopes to convince Ben Simmons to stay
sportando.basketball/en/doc-rivers-… – 12:46 PM

Kurt Helin @basketballtalk
Doc Rivers on Ben Simmons: “We want him back.” That’s not happening. nba.nbcsports.com/2021/09/22/doc… – 12:40 PM

CBS NBA @CBSSportsNBA
Doc Rivers says 76ers want Ben Simmons to remain in Philadelphia: ‘We would love to get Ben back’
cbssports.com/nba/news/doc-r… – 12:35 PM

Brian Robb @BrianTRobb
New: With Ben Simmons’ holdout looming, I looked at the possibility of the #Celtics taking part in Simmons trade talks as a facilitating third team: masslive.com/celtics/2021/0… – 12:29 PM

Keith Smith @KeithSmithNBA
As I have for months now, I want to see Ben Simmons somehow land on Minnesota with Karl-Anthony Towns, D’Angelo Russell and Anthony Edwards all there too. It’s the best fit for Simmons and that team becomes really, really interesting with Simmons in the fold. – 11:47 AM

More on this storyline

Darren Wolfson: (Gupta) is going to work his ass off to try to acquire Ben Simmons and he has full authority to do so. Glen Taylor, Marc Lore, Alex Rodriguez… Trust me, they’ve given him the green light -via Spotify / September 25, 2021

According to sources, the 76ers would want limited or no protections on those firsts in hopes of flipping them for an All-Star caliber player around the deadline. That, alone, would be incredibly risky for Cleveland — a still-rebuilding team that’s won 60 combined games over the last three years and is only projected to win around 26 this season. Even the addition of Simmons wouldn’t change the 2021-22 forecast that much, as the Cavs wouldn’t have enough short-term floor-spacers or shooters around the limited Simmons. Any deal would mean rejiggering the roster quite a bit. -via Cleveland Plain Dealer / September 25, 2021

Because Gupta has been elevated from inside the organization, it is conceivable that the Wolves can move right along and continue their talks with the Sixers without much of a diversion. Gupta and Morey worked together for years in Houston so there is background there, and sources say Gupta was involved in some of the talks with the Sixers earlier this summer before the conflict with Rosas reached its head. -via The Athletic / September 25, 2021