Should the Knicks kick the tires on a Ben Simmons trade?

If Philly is indeed going to make significant changes this offseason, should the Knicks be interested in Ben Simmons?

After a disappointing end to their postseason, all signs appear to be pointing to the Philadelphia 76ers trusting the detonator instead of the process. It might be time to blow up the Sixers, and the most significant target of fans’ displeasure has been Ben Simmons.

Simmons, 24, was the No. 1 overall pick in the 2016 NBA Draft. He’s a point guard who stands almost seven feet tall. He’s coming off a shortened 2021 season in which he averaged a career-low 14.3 points per game with 6.9 assists and 7.2 rebounds.

Simmons is 14-0 against the Knicks in his career, however. He’s seemingly played his best basketball against the Knicks, so would the “make your enemy your friend” approach could serve the Knicks well in a big offseason at MSG?

Look, the Knicks need some help in the backcourt. Derrick Rose, Alec Burks, Elfrid Payton and Reggie Bullock are all free agents. Adding size in the backcourt to compliment Julius Randle and RJ Barrett could make the Knicks a scary team to game plan against, right?

Yes, there are some issues with Simmons’ game that would need to be addressed. It’s hard to have your primary ball handler be Shaq-bad at the free throw line in crunch time and Simmons’ numbers were down across the board this year. But there’s so much talent there that maybe a change of scenery would help him?

Maybe we bank on Tom Thibodeau getting the absolute best out of Simmons the way he has with so many other players throughout his coaching career?

Quick reality check: Simmons is going to make a lot of money and has been underwhelming for far too much of his career for the Knicks to mortgage the assets it would take to add him. Let someone else make the dramatic trade this offseason.

The Knicks have bigger goals to chase and Simmons is not the guy to help them get there.