The Sixers are stuck in an unenviable situation of having two big men thought to be future standout performers playing the same position who struggle while on the court together. Indeed, the roster problem that having centers Joel Embiid and Jahlil Okafor presents is nothing new for the Sixers, but it is now evident that the experiment is taking its toil on the franchise, Keith Pompey of The Philadelphia Inquirer writes. It is obvious that the team struggles when the two players share the court, but the Sixers have had trouble trading Okafor and Noel for what it perceives as equal value, Pompey adds. What’s more, the value of Okafor and Embiid will continue to dip if they are not on the court, thus making the situation quirkier and more problematic, Pompey notes. The Sixers are 1-5 in games they have both started and for specific reasons why the duo has not meshed, it is worth giving Pompey’s piece a read.
Here is more out of Philadelphia:
- In a lineup that does seem to work, Embiid and power forward Ersan Ilyasova played well off of each other, Pompey writes in the same piece, and it will be interesting to see if Ilyasova’s role is increased. Ilyasova was acquired in a trade from the Oklahoma City Thunder on November 1st.
- Robert Covington has struggled with his shot this season, but erupted during the second half of Friday’s game after receiving a boost of confidence from Sixers coach Brett Brown, Brian Seltzer of NBA.com relays. Covington will make slightly over $1.0MM this season and the team holds an option worth roughly $1.1MM for the 2017/18 campaign.
The problem is Okafor. Trade that bum now for the highest offer.
Second.
Third
Both have established that they have NBA skills. GMs aren’t going to forget what they can do, and their skills arent eroding on the pine.
Which begs the question, are the Sixers in a worse bargaining position with Noel and Okafor than the Suns were with Markieff Morris before they traded the #13 pick in the 2011 draft for the #13 pick in the 2016 draft?
Ben Simmons is coming, and Sixers have two lottery picks and $50M to get guards and wings.
Which begs the question, why trade before you know whether you’re getting Markelle Fultz (PHI17) and Jayson Tatum (LA17)
1) There’re no centers on Noel or Jahlils level in the 2017 Draft. 2) Noel is the best free agent center this coming summer, but the Sixers have the right to match. 3) Jahlil and Richaun have years left on their rookie contract.
Which begs the question, do probable lottery teams have a better option in the draft than Okafor or Noel, especially since teams like Boston, Minnesota, Phoenix and Los Angeles are already saturated with guards?
Bryan Colangelo happens to be right on this one.
why trade someone of value for Noel when he will be a free agent after the season. Teams know there is no way Philadelphia will match any offers considering they dont need him anymore. If I’m boston I would wait. Neither of these guys will help them win a championship . They are just a piece of the puzzle.
teams matched every restricted free agent of value last year, regardless whether they had a “logjam” at the position. jordan clarkson, tyler johnson, allen crabbe….
If the Sixers match, it gives them more flexibility to find a trade in the future. It behooves them to take a legitimate trade this year, or wait until Noel gets an offer sheet.
Think realistically, who is going to back the truck up to offer him more than 4/64M? There are 3 RFA Centers – Plumlee, Len, and Noel all with similar skillsets. Boston and Brooklyn are the only legitimate destinations with the Cap Space. Brooklyn mainly b/c they are giving offer sheets to everyone.
Add the Lakers to Boston and Brooklyn. Maybe the Mavs too.