No Omar Asik, or Dion Waiters for Philadelphia

Lots of rumors, no results. 

Over the past couple days, the Sixers have been involved in a couple of rumors that were circulating through the league's online following. 

After all of the commotion around Omar Asik, not only are the Sixers not involved in any potential trade for the center, but he isn't even going anywhere at this moment. 

So no Asik for the Sixers, and no Dion Waiters either, as I wrote about yesterday for Philadunkia. Check out the original article here. 

From Philadunkia: 

"Don’t expect to see Dion Waiters in a Sixers uniform anytime this season.

Despite the fact that the rumor has stayed surfaced, there seems to be little merit in a move that would ship Evan Turner and his talents to Cleveland for the former lottery pick.

Waiters is inefficient, inconsistent, and streaky; not quite Hinkie’s type of preferred player.

A report yesterday from Bleacher Report’s Jared Zwerling explained that Waiters preferred to play in Philly, not because it is his hometown, but because he feels he could ‘be the best player on the team.’ That statement exposes the attitude issue with Waiters; he currently cares more for his own success than the overall success of his squad. This would not be an ideal attitude to pair with a young, developing Sixers squad.

Waiters has a ton of development to do both on and off the court, and he doesn’t really seem like he would fit with the Sixers franchise going forward, especially if he isn’t ok with playing second fiddle. If Waiters doesn’t like taking a side-seat to Kyrie in Cleveland, would he ever accept a secondary role with the Sixers, who would be looking to pair him with Michael Carter-Williams, Nerlens Noel, a lottery pick or two, and any free agent acquisitions? Not likely.

This rumor, like many potential trade rumors around this time, must be taken with a grain of salt. Many are the result of agents working to increase interest around the league.

Thus, I didn’t put much stock into it when it first popped up a couple weeks ago. But, when the rumor re-surfaced yesterday, I was thinking that maybe the Sixers would entertain the offer in order to have more control heading into the offseason. Maybe the Sixers wanted to get the value for Turner, who will be a RFA this summer, now, and then flip Waiters in the offseason after some decent development under Brett Brown.

Turner however will likely get much more value around the trade deadline when teams are looking to add offense for a playoff push. Thus, such a move at this time doesn’t seem to make much sense, and a source close to the situation said that the acquisition of Waiters is unlikely.

Quotes from Waiters today denying that he ever even asked to be traded make the reality of the rumor appear even less likely.

“At the end of the day, I know what I said and didn’t say, and that’s one of those things I absolutely never said. They can keep talking. I never said it,” Waiters told the Akron Beacon Journal.

“I’m asleep and my phone is blowing up,” he said. “The way my phone was going crazy, I thought I got traded already. It is what it is. They come up with these stories that aren’t true. Let them keep writing.”

Okay, then.

I would expect the Sixers lineup to look different come deadline day; I just wouldn’t expect Dion Waiters to be in it."