The 76ers’ massive rebuilding plan has plenty of gray area, none grayer than a bizarre bit from a complicated trade this offseason.
When the 76ers and Kings made a multifaceted trade headlined by Nik Stauskas going to Philadelphia on July 1, the deal included two potential NBA Draft pick swaps and also another first-round selection going from Sacramento to Philadelphia.
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Due to other obligations, the absolute earliest the Kings can send a first round pick to the Sixers is 2018. This is due to what is known as the Stepien rule (named after former Cavs owner Ted Stepien) which prevents teams from ever being without first round picks in two consecutive drafts in the future. Since Sacramento could send their 2016 pick to Chicago, they were not allowed to agree to anything that would give them a possibility of being without a choice in 2017.
Leaving the swaps aside, there are three potential outcomes for the first rounder Sacramento owes Philadelphia:
Path No. 1: The Kings’ 2016 pick is outside the top 10, so it goes to the Bulls. They then would send their 2018 pick, if it falls outside the top 10, to the 76ers.
Path No. 2: The Kings’ 2016 pick is in the top 10, so they keep it. But their 2017 pick is not in the top 10, so it goes to the Bulls. That means the 76ers would receive the Kings’ 2019 first-rounder with no protections.
Path No. 3: The Kings’ 2016 and 2017 picks are both in the top 10, so they send a second-rounder to the Bulls to fulfill that obligation. In that case, the Kings could send either their 2018 or 2019 pick to the Sixers without violating any rules.
That third path is where things get interesting.
In most circumstances, this question would exist mostly as fodder for a small subsection of the basketball world to obsess over. This specific ambiguity has a much greater potential impact, though, because of when it occurs. Sacramento’s star center DeMarcus Cousins has three more seasons under contract with no options, meaning he will not become a free agent until the summer of 2018.
If he chooses to head elsewhere as an unrestricted free agent, the Kings could have a very rough 2018-19 season — and very high 2019 NBA Draft pick. But the Kings with Cousins could be respectable in 2017-18, which could mean a lower pick in the 2018 Draft.
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What makes this situation even more fascinating is that there is still some uncertainty around how it will work. While many expect that the Kings have to wait two seasons after they convey a selection to the Bulls to send that first-rounder to Philadelphia (2017 to 2019, for example), it is not entirely clear in this case because this set of circumstances does not happen very often. For example, the Heat had to deal with a protected pick from a previous trade when they acquired Goran Dragic from the Suns in February, but that prior obligation involved an unprotected first-round selection, meaning the timeline on the pick being available was clearer.
A lot of this discussion hinges on the Kings continuing to be in the bottom third of the NBA. If they make strides — they currently are tied for the sixth-worst record in the league — it becomes a non-issue. Continued poor play, though, could cost them Cousins in free agency, then a potential replacement for him in the 2019 NBA Draft. As ridiculous as it may sound, this small point could have a major impact on the league.