The Lakers' visit to Philadelphia highlights a four-game Sunday slate in the NBA, and it puts the spotlight back on the most significant trade of 2012, which put Andrew Bynum on the Sixers and Dwight Howard in L.A. Of course, Bynum has yet to make his debut for Philly, and that's made the four-team megadeal difficult to assess so far. On Thursday, Bynum will get an MRI on his knees that will help determine his path to recovery, and as we await those results, here's the latest on the missing 7-footer.
- John Mitchell of the Philadelphia Inquirer hears there's no question Bynum will play at some point this season, and argues that the Sixers benefitted from the trade even if Bynum plays only briefly before departing as a free agent this summer. The cap space they'd have if he signs elsewhere would be enough to attract a significant free agent, Mitchell writes, contending that even if they acquired Bynum knowing the severity of his knee issues, the trade was still worthwhile because of the cap flexibility it gives them.
- If Bynum doesn't play this season, the Sixers "most certainly will not sign him," according to Bob Cooney of the Philadelphia Daily News, who points to the improvement of Jrue Holiday, Thaddeus Young and Evan Turner as reasons the team can be optimstic about the future.
- Lakers GM Mitch Kupchak said the team wasn't concerned about Bynum's history of knee trouble heading into this past offseason, and was prepared to move forward with him until the opportunity to acquire Howard arose. Mark Medina of the Los Angeles Daily News has the details.