NBA rumors: Major 76ers-Ben Simmons regret, Knicks big-game hunting, new No. 1 pick favorite

The conference finals are set. We have (mostly) fresh faces in the running for that elusive NBA championship, with Boston-Indiana in the East and Minnesota-Dallas in the West. For the rest of the league, however, it's time to look ahead to a pivotal summer.

This offseason promises a great many changes as the new collective bargaining agreement forces front offices to reevaluate their team-building strategies. Teams who underperformed will need to reckon with past blunders in order to chart a more prosperous path to the future. This is not a particularly strong free agency crop on the surface, but several high-profile trade candidates are set to take center stage. There is no shortage of teams desperate to improve.

Here are the latest NBA rumors worthy of your attention.

NBA rumors: Zaccharie Risacher gains steam as potential No. 1 pick for Hawks

The 2024 NBA Draft is almost entirely unsettled. We have no idea who the Atlanta Hawks will select in the No. 1 spot, with at least five prospects expected to garner serious consideration from GM Landry Fields and the Hawks' decision-making collective. That said, we can read the tea leaves to decipher a potential favorite.

When Atlanta won the lottery, French 7-footer Alex Sarr immediately took the top spot on mock drafts from virtually every credible reporter. Now, there's a new name making waves. Another French prospect — 6-foot-10 wing Zaccharie Risacher of JL Bourg — is the new projected No. 1 pick from Bleacher Report's Jonathan Wasserman.

"While scouts continue to debate the height of [Zaccharie] Risacher's ceiling, there is also perceived level of certainty tied to his positional size, athleticism, shotmaking and defensive tools/quickness. And in a draft where there isn't an obvious, sure-thing All-Star at the top, Risacher's floor and valued three-and-D archetype could give him an edge with a team that saw AJ Griffin struggle with injuries and Saddiq Bey go down late to an ACL tear."

I am admittedly skeptical of Risacher as the No. 1 pick. He was the No. 15 prospect on FanSided's most recent big board. The size, 3s, and mobility are all very appealing, but Risacher offers very little dynamism on the ball, and there are valid questions about how real the shooting is. Even so, this is a wonky draft. A strong role player profile could be all it takes to plant Risacher on Atlanta's radar.

The 19-year-old is certainly peaking at the right time. He put together an impressive performance in the LNB Pro A playoffs on Saturday, scoring 28 points on 5-of-7 shooting from deep in 29 minutes.

If Risacher can consistently score at the rim and punish errant closeouts, then he's really cooking with gas. He certainly isn't the best prospect available to Atlanta, but in this draft, it's hard to knock a team for following its heart. Risacher is absolutely on the radar at No. 1, whether he "should" be or not.

NBA rumors: Knicks expected to target another star this offseason

The New York Knicks' season ended bittersweetly over the weekend. It's hard not to be romantic about this group, but another second-round exit was not the end goal. The Indiana Pacers were undeniable beneficiaries of a bruised and battered Knicks core, but excuses are the currency of the mediocre. New York needs to look in the mirror, evaluate the roster, and look for avenues to improvement. They exist.

How the Knicks need to go about improving is up for interpretation, of course. Some would say the general makeup of this roster is ideal. Jalen Brunson as a superstar, Julius Randle as a secondary defensive stressor, and a collection of affordable role players who all embrace their niche and compete with unquenchable fire.

That said, New York still plans to operate aggressively in pursuit of a true second star to pair with Brunson. According to Fred Katz of The Athletic, the Knicks view this summer as "the time" to trade for the next major piece.

"The organization is still targeting the upcoming summer as the time to trade for the next big name, league sources tell The Athletic. Randle can become a free agent in 2025 and will be due for a raise then, as can Brunson, who is eligible for an extension this summer but could make more money by waiting until 2025 free agency to sign a new contract."

Any Knicks star trade will probably involve Julius Randle, whose roughly $30 million in (potentially expiring) salary can easily put New York within range of most impact pieces. Leon Rose and the front office have patiently stockpiled draft picks and maintained flexibility for this exact reason. The OG Anunoby trade was a major step forward, but in reality, the Knicks are still lurking for that true needle-mover.

This offseason should have no shortage of intriguing names available. New York probably steers clear of Trae Young and Darius Garland, but if Donovan Mitchell pops into veiw, we have to imagine New York will ponder the merits of such a trade. Paul George and Jimmy Butler probably make more sense next to Brunson. The former is a particularly strong candidate to change teams and he could view the Knicks as his best chance to contend in the weak Eastern Conference.

New York was so successful this season because of the strength of the collective, but expect the Knicks to jump at the next available superstar without hesitation.

NBA rumors: 76ers missed opportunity to trade Ben Simmons for Tyrese Haliburton

Once upon a time, Ben Simmons played for the Philadelphia 76ers. Then he decided not to. After spending half of the 2021-22 season engaged in a willful contract holdout, Simmons was dealt to the Brooklyn Nets in exchange for Daryl Morey's longtime partner in crime, James Harden. It was a move years in the making, with Morey showing unwavering commitment to acquiring the former MVP.

In hindsight, it appears that Morey had some rather restrictive blinders on. The Nets weren't the only team to call the Sixers about Simmons' availability. The Sacramento Kings were also interested. At the time, there was speculation about Tyrese Haliburton as the potential centerpiece of a Simmons trade. Instead, Sacramento sent Haliburton to Indiana in exchange for Domantas Sabonis. The rest is history.

After one full season in Philadelphia, Harden requested a trade to the Los Angeles Clippers, which he was ultimately granted. Morey refused to offer Harden the long-term max deal he desired and Harden, feeling betrayed by his ex-best friend, threw a very public tantrum. The Sixers' ultimate return on investment was a second round exit and, uh, Nic Batum.

Haliburton, meanwhile, just led the Pacers to the Eastern Conference Finals — a stage Joel Embiid has never been to during his Philadelphia tenure. The Sixers could have controlled Haliburton's contract for more than half a decade while cultivating the best young backcourt in the NBA. Just imagine the Haliburton-Maxey dynamic this past season, when both were arguably top-10 players at their peak.

There has been contradictory reporting about whether or not Haliburton was actually available to the Sixers, but Keith Pompey of the Philadelphia Inquirer put any uncertainty to bed in a recent appearance on 97.5 The Fanatic.

The Sixers wanted Harden, so much so that Haliburton was never under serious consideration. Harden was obviously the superior talent at the time, but Haliburton was 21 years old with a skyward trajectory. He reached unexpected heights in Indiana, to be fair, but the long-term upside of Haliburton probably should have taken precedence over an aging Harden. Haliburton was already averaging 14.3 points and 7.4 assists on impressive .457/.413/.837 splits when the Kings traded him.

Hindsight is 20-20, of course. Harden was the obvious preferred candidate the time, as Philadelphia needed to maximize its present competitive window with Embiid. There was no telling how quickly and how high Haliburton would climb the NBA ranks.

That said, this should sting a bit for Philly fans. What a missed opportunity.