This idea is pretty out there, I won't lie. Both the 76ers and the Warriors have struggled greatly this year. The Warriors are the reigning champs, but certainly haven't looked like it, while the 76ers have been decimated by injuries to each member of their big four early on, and haven't fit seamlessly even when everyone was healthy. Maybe, like in the John Wall - Russell Westbrook trade a few years ago, there might be a "my bad contract for your bad contract" solution here, and one that's very impactful to the championship race.

Warriors

Klay Thompson looks like a shell of himself, and has struggled on both ends of the floor. Let's not pile on him; it's amazing he recovered at all, given the severity of his injuries and his age. But he's a few months from turning 33, and is owed nearly $42 million for this year and next year. Even if the Warriors wanted to end an era by moving on from him, it would be hard to find a player who simultaneously helps them win now while also still being close enough in value that the other team would be willing to give him up. Enter Tobias Harris; 30 years old himself, and owed about $38 million for the next two years. Tobias has fully embraced an off-ball role with the 76ers, and has been playing well. He's averaging 15-6-3, has a quick trigger off the catch, has hit 40% of his 5.2 attempts from deep, adds a little more playmaking than a typical fourth option, plays solid defense... it's all good. But it's not a great role for him. Someone with his shot-creation abilities shouldn't be relegated to playing the P.J. Tucker role of a pure spot-up shooter, at least when he's playing with the other starters. The Warriors' motion system could be a perfect fit for a guy like him (and Shake Milton and Furkan Korkmaz to lesser extends) who are decent shooters, drivers, and passers, but don't excel at any one thing. Instead of being seen as limited players with no defining skill, they would be viewed more as well-rounded players who can do a bit of everything. It's all about perspective.

In terms of lineups, I think starting Harris at the 3 and shifting Wiggins up to the 2 makes the most sense. Flanking Steph Curry with that much size could really help their defense, and keeps Poole in his killer 6th man role. However, if they want to stick with a more traditional positional set-up, they could promote Poole to the starting lineup. Having Harris come off the bench would give the Warriors much more flexibility to play small ball lineups with Draymond Green at center, like a much more souped-up version of Otto Porter Jr. from last year. Shake is coming fresh off a 27-point performance over the Minnesota Timberwolves (on only 15 shots), and while that's certainly an outlier that no one should expect again soon, it does show what he's capable of. Most nights though, you get a balanced backup guard who also stands tall at 6'5. Korkmaz is super streaky, but he's a veteran wing that's been in the league for years, and is always an option for Kerr to throw in when his team needs an offensive spark.

Valuewise, it will be hard for most Warriors fans to accept trading Klay after he's been a mainstay of multiple different championship teams. But it's clear that he's regressed, and he just isn't providing what the Warriors need, and neither is Jonathan Kuminga. Steph is playing like an MVP, and the Warriors can't just waste a year of his prime waiting for Klay to magically turn back the clock or Kuminga to turn it around. By swapping Klay for Harris, they got someone younger, cheaper, longer, and more dependable. The fact that they also get another 1 or 2 rotation pieces for a guy that's shooting 40% from the field and looks totally lost, all while only giving up one protected pick? It's a deal they can't afford to say no to, even if seeing Klay in another jersey will sting.

76ers

The 76ers somewhat balanced, and have played decently when everyone is healthy, but Harris clearly isn't cutting it as a fourth option. And as we previously mentioned, asking him to spot up while Harden and Embiid do their thing isn't a great use of Harris, who's a good-but-not-great shooter. Part of the 76ers' scheme has to do with personnel though; they really don't have any guys who can shoot off of movement, so why run any off-ball screens anyway? Their only shooters who take more than six threes per-36 minutes are Harden and Maxey (both of whom barely cross this mark, and do most of their work on-ball), and Georges Niang, who also is more of a catch-and-shoot marksman than someone who will come screaming off screens. It's no wonder their offense is mostly an isolation or post up, while all the other players stand in a stagnant spot-up position; they couldn't do much more if they tried. However, Klay Thompson certainly can. Even while struggling, he's still shooting 38.2% from deep on nearly twelve attempts per-36 since returning from his torn ACL. Teams might feel comfortable about stunting off of Harris to double Harden or swarm Embiid in the post, but no one in their right mind would leave Klay Thompson at the three-point line. Even if they try to help off of a guy like Tucker, he can just set an off-ball screen to spring Klay open, since he can shoot off the move as if he was standing still.

This is all assuming that Glenn Rivers can make the right coaching adjustments to introduce more off-ball movement, but good luck accounting for Harden's isos, Joel in the post, Maxey slicing to the rim or bombing from 30 feet, and now Klay and Tucker both finding open threes all night. In bench units, Joel Embiid always looked amazing running dribble handoffs with knockdown shooters like Seth Curry and J.J. Redick, and now the 76ers could have another guy that could do that with him again. If those two are paired up, it would also mean more opportunities for Harden to have Maxey alongside him to shoulder some of the shot-creation load, instead of throwing the Beard out there with four backups and asking him to play like his Houston self again. Moving shake Milton would leave the 76ers thin at guard, with De'Anthony Melton being their only reliable guy off the bench, but staggering their three star guards and letting Melton fill in the gaps could be effective, at least when everyone is healthy.

This doesn't solve all of the 76ers problems though, just like there are still some lingering questions for the Warriors. Other than Harden, not a single player on the team averages even 5 assists per-36, as playmaking is a serious shortcoming of the squad. Swapping in Klay for Harris (and also losing Shake) doesn't really help there, and arguably makes it worse. The 76ers are also short on size and rebounding outside of Embiid, and again this is a step backwards on that front. Klay Thompson might end up rehabbing a bit further and end up going back to being the guy that can shut down opposing guards, but that's far from guaranteed (and Matisse Thybulle isn't half bad at that already). P.J. Tucker is really the only true forward on the team left, outside of the defensively-challenged Niang. If anything, the 76ers should be trying to rest his legs for the playoffs, not requiring him to guard LeBron and Kawhi every single night. Now that even Harris isn't here to take some of the larger assignments. This proposed three-guard lineup with Harden, Maxey, and Klay Thompson might be manageable against teams like the Kings and Pacers, but it might prove untenable against the cream of the Eastern Conference crop. If Tucker takes Jayson Tatum, is Klay big enough to contain Jaylen Brown? And even if he is, are they going to expect Embiid to simultaneously keep Al Horford AND Robert Williams off the glass? Against Milwaukee, Tucker is a little smaller than Khris Middleton, let alone Giannis, so the Sixers would be consistently playing behind the 8-ball with such a physicality disadvantage.

All of this may sound like arguments why the 76ers should make another trade. But Maxey should be near-untouchable unless another high-level star is returned, and Harden and Embiid aren't going anywhere. Melton and Tucker are the only true two-way role players on the team, and have more value in Philly than elsewhere. Harris clearly has to be the guy that gets moved in any consequential trade, but who can you reasonably get? Who would want Harris's contract, unless they're sending out one that's even worse? Is selling Harris for multiple lower-level pieces, like Mike Conley and Malik Beasley, while having to add any remaining picks the 76ers have really going to make this team more likely to win a championship? I don't think so. In Klay, at least you have the gamble of dominant offensive upside, and maybe even a decent gamble on Kuminga's tools as well. Kuminga has looked borderline unplayable this year, and is shooting about 40% from the field, and one could argue he's already a bust. But he had some of the highest upside of anyone in his draft class, and showed flashes of serious offensive talent his rookie year. In a more simplified role than Golden State's complex read-and-react scheme, perhaps he'd look better. Given the need for someone who can guard bigger forwards, he'd certainly get the opportunities to prove himself. And if he doesn't pan out, his salary could be packaged along with that nice Warriors pick and other assets for a more win-now player at a later date, much like the Warriors are surely considering right now.

Summary

This is a trade that feels like a lose-lose at times. The Warriors give up a beloved fan favorite (and former All-Star), a recent #7 pick, and another first in order to get a 15 ppg scorer, a backup, and a benchwarmer. The 76ers trade in their fourth option and sixth man for an older, slower, smaller, creakier version that exacerbates some of their issues, plus a young guy that doesn't seem to know how to play basketball. But if everything works out, it could be a win-win. Golden State could sell high on Klay and Kuminga, and get two or three guys that are in their prime in return for two guys that are post- and pre-prime respectively, while also finding players that flow more smoothly in their system. The 76ers add some more youth and assets, while integrating a championship-tested veteran that gives their offense some needed unpredictability and juice that it has lacked for nearly a year. There's a lot of risk on both sides here, but with how their records are looking so far, it's a risk both teams might want to take.