First reported by ESPN's Marc Stein, the New Orleans Pelicans have traded reserve guard Ish Smith to the Philadelphia 76ers. According to Yahoo's Marc Spears, the Pelicans received back two second-round picks for trading Smith to the Sixers. To make room for Smith, the Sixers will waive guard Tony Wroten.
The Sixers are releasing guard Tony Wroten to make room for acquired guard Ish Smith, a source told Yahoo Sports.
— Marc J. Spears (@SpearsNBAYahoo) December 24, 2015
Having played for 10 different teams since he entered the league in 2010, Smith has been a journeyman player for his entire career. Smith has played for Philadelphia twice before, playing 70 games for the Sixers in the 2013-14 season and again last year for 25 more.
Smith has been playing well for the Pelicans this season, appearing in their starting lineup three times due to New Orleans' injury woes. However, with Norris Cole recently returning from injury, Smith's minutes have decreased dramatically. With the Pelicans, Smith has averaged 8.9 points, 5.7 assists and 3.4 rebounds in 27 games.
With T.J. McConnell, Isaiah Canaan and Kendall Marshall, the Sixers have a number of different players that can play the point guard position, so it is hard to envision what type of role Smith will have in Philadelphia. However, Smith is a speedy point guard that can help push Philadelphia's pace, something the Sixers may try to do now that associate head coach Mike D'Antoni is there.
