Guerschon Yabusele is an enticing Sixers asset as the NBA trade deadline nears. Is he heading out?

Guerschon Yabusele is doing his best to focus solely on helping the 76ers win games this week.

“I would say I’m more worried about this than getting traded,” he said following Sunday’s 118-110 loss to the Boston Celtics. “If it does happen, I will be in whatever situation I got to be in. I don’t want to get my head into this too much. I just want to think about playing right now.

“I’m still a Sixers player, and I hope to stay a Sixers player.”

» READ MORE: How much change is needed for a surging Sixers team before the trade deadline? It’s complicated.

But the 6-foot-7, 279-pound post player is a sought-after trade asset. Sources have said the New York Knicks have expressed interest in acquiring him ahead of Thursday’s 3 p.m. trade deadline. The Celtics and Denver Nuggets are also among the teams that have expressed interest in the Frenchman, according to HoopsHype.

A potential trade to the defending champion Celtics (35-15) would enable Yabusele to reunite with the team that selected him 16th overall in the 2016 NBA draft. And Yabusele’s performance on Sunday certainly made an impression.

Boston had a tough time guarding the 29-year-old, who finished with 21 points on 8-for-13 shooting, including 2 of 4 on three-pointers.

Yabusele has posted consecutive 20-point performances for the first time in his NBA career, including a career-high 28 points against the Nuggets on Friday. He is playing arguably his most consistent stretch of basketball, and four of this season’s 20-point efforts have come in the last 12 games.

He was asked his thoughts about the possibility of being traded to the Celtics.

“If something, like, that happens, I will talk about it when it happens,” Yabusele said. “But as far as right now, you know, I’m trying to worry about our team. We got a thing going on. We got ups and downs. But I feel like in the last couple of games, we’ve been showing a lot of great things, a lot of effort and great energy.

“Right now, I’m more focused on getting some wins and come back in the play-in tournament and of course try to get in the playoffs. That’s our goal.”

» READ MORE: Sixers give up a 26-point lead in a late-game collapse against the Celtics

The Sixers (19-29) have lost two straight games after winning their previous four. They are in 11th place in the Eastern Conference standings, one game behind the 10th-place Chicago Bulls with 34 games remaining.

The top six finishers in the East and West automatically qualify for the playoffs. The teams seeded No. 7 through 10 will compete for their respective conference’s final two postseason berths in the play-in tournament.

The Bulls (21-29) could easily slide in the standings after trading their best player, Zach LaVine, on Sunday to the Sacramento Kings in a three-team deal that included the San Antonio Spurs. In exchange for the two-time All-Star, Chicago received Kevin Huerter from the Kings (24-24) in addition to Zach Collins, Tre Jones, and its 2025 first-round pick back from the Spurs (21-25).

Yabusele has outplayed his one-year, $2 million veteran minimum contract. The Sixers also don’t have his Bird rights, which would have allowed them to re-sign him with a better offer than other teams, despite the Sixers being above the salary cap.

Prospective suitors likely will find it easy to outbid the Sixers for him in free agency. Therefore, the Sixers may choose to trade him now for one or two second-round picks and/or to fill a position of need.

The Knicks are an enticing team because of the health issues involving Sixers centers Joel Embiid and Andre Drummond.

Embiid (foot) missed his 15th consecutive game on Sunday; he last played on Jan. 4. The 2023 league MVP and seven-time All-Star has played in only 13 games due to injuries and a three-game suspension.

Drummond (toe) has missed 17 of the last 21 games and 20 games total due to injuries. New York has been shopping Jericho Sims, who could provide depth at the center spot for the Sixers.

But Yabusele admitted there was extra motivation playing against the Celtics, who waived him on July 10, 2019, after he averaged just 2.3 points and 1.4 rebounds over two seasons.

» READ MORE: Tyrese Maxey already has nine 40-point games. Only Allen Iverson had more for the Sixers by age 25.

He took pride in getting an opportunity to show Boston that he can come back to the NBA and excel.

“But not just because of them,” he said. “It’s just because of me. I’m just trying to progress every day. I’m just trying to get better. Since Boston, I kind of let it go. I understand that situation was different. So I don’t hold any grudges against them.

“I’m still thankful for them. They changed my life. They drafted me. … And being out of the league, going through every step that I’ve been through made me the player I am today. So I’m really grateful for that.”