Philadelphia 76ers Offer a Max Deal to Ben Simmons

The Philadelphia 76ers are on a spending spree. At the start of the 2019 NBA Free Agency period, the Sixers were waiting until the clock struck 6 pm before inking a long-term deal with veteran forward, Tobias Harris. As expected, he reached an agreement on a max contract, keeping him around for the next five seasons.

Then, the Sixers wasted no time going for their supposed 'Plan B.' As veteran guard, Jimmy Butler expressed strong interest in playing down in South Beach, the Sixers agreed to a sign and trade with the Miami Heat, sending Butler away. Therefore, the Sixers used some hefty funds on veteran power forward/center, Al Horford.

Still, the Sixers had enough space left over to get somebody on a max contract. As it turns out, they are going to max one of their own. It was expected to happen at some point in the near future, but there's never a wrong time to lock in an athlete to a long-term deal when you know they are the real deal.

According to ESPN's NBA Insider Adrian Wojnarowski, the Sixers have extended a max offer to their star point guard, Ben Simmons. The offer is $168 million for the next five seasons. So far, the contract isn't official, but the offer is out there, and there are expectations that Simmons and the Sixers will come to an agreement soon.

Simmons might not be at the height of his game quite yet, but during his first two seasons in the NBA, he's shown tons of promise. He's helped lead the Sixers to the playoffs over the last two years, was named the Rookie of the Year in 2017-2018 and even clinched a spot in the All-Star game just this past season.

Although he's not perfect, the expectations for Simmons heading into year three are quite high. As he's been criticized heavily for his lack of a jump shot, he's got some work to do over the offseason. Now, all distractions are out of the way as he gets locked into his role in Philly long-term.

Justin Grasso covers the Philadelphia 76ers for South Jersey's 97.3 ESPN. You can follow Justin on Twitter: @JGrasso_