Sources: Sixers called on Portland's Malcolm Brogdon; team hoping to acquire combo guard

With less than 24 hours to go before the 2024 NBA trade deadline, the Sixers remain engaged on several fronts, but reluctance from sellers around the league could complicate their quest to upgrade the team.

Add another name to the Philadelphia rumor mill — the Sixers made inquiries about Portland’s Malcolm Brogdon, sources told PHLY, in the hope of adding the versatile veteran guard to their rotation. As of now, however, Brogdon appears to be staying in Portland, with the Blazers content to hold onto Brogdon unless they are bowled over with an offer.

A career 39.1 percent shooter from deep, Brogdon is in the midst of his best extended stretch as a shooter since hitting the league, building off of last year’s career-best mark (44.4 percent) with another good year this year (41.2 percent). Brogdon is owed $22.5 million this year and next, with his deal coming off of the books in the summer of 2025.

Brogdon fits the profile of an archetype the Sixers are said to be after right now, a combo guard with the ability to run the offense and a level of comfort playing off of the ball. Calls have been made around the league on the matter, though they’ve run into roadblocks elsewhere, too.

The Sixers made exploratory calls on Atlanta’s Bogdan Bogdanovic, per a league source, but the Hawks are said to be asking for a heavy premium to even consider moving him, with Bogdanovic locked in on a team-friendly deal through 2025-26 (with a club option for 2026-27).

The theme has been pretty straightforward — teams with readymade, playoff-level contributors are asking for multiple first-round picks (or a good pick plus a swap or two), and the Sixers are reluctant to sacrifice first-round capital that could be used as part of bigger deals closer to this year’s draft.

Some other notes to consider, building off reports from others around the league this week:

• Buddy Hield is a name of interest for the Sixers, as Yahoo’s Jake Fischer and others have noted this week. At present, however, there’s a gap in valuation between the Sixers and Pacers that would appear to rule out a trade. Indiana is hoping to get a first of some sort in exchange for Hield, a source told PHLY, while the Sixers likely would not do a deal for anything beyond expiring contracts and second-round picks.
• Philadelphia is on the hunt for a big man to help fill the void with Joel Embiid out for at least the next month (and realistically, for a timeframe of about 6-8 weeks). Andre Drummond and Kelly Olynyk are the two headline names there, but the Sixers have had discussions about several other options this week, and the team is likely to make an addition even if a trade for one does not materialize. Olynyk would appear to be the best fit as a result of his ability to play in double-big frontcourts, giving the Sixers options now and when they eventually get Embiid back.
• The Chicago Bulls are a team many expected to be sellers at the deadline, but conversations with league executives suggest they may (mostly) stand pat. Alex Caruso has been floated in trade rumors from the opening month of the season onward, but Chicago’s asking price is high on the multi-positional defender.
• The Brooklyn Nets are said to be monitoring the Dejounte Murray situation and could emerge as a suitor for the Hawks guard, per one source. Murray’s market, as other insiders have reported around the league, is currently short of the multi-first ask the Hawks have set after paying a premium to acquire him in the summer of 2022.
• The most likely Sixers to get moved between now and 3:00 on Thursday? Marcus Morris and Robert Covington, according to a source.