Jahlil Okafor could be the odd man out in Philadelphia, Mike Sielski of the Philadelphia Inquirer opines. Sielski notes that Okafor is not a fit next to either Nerlens Noel or Joel Embiid, and he’s the worst defender of the three players.
Noel had previously expressed concerns about the frontcourt logjam, but it appears he is now more open to playing alongside his teammates. Embiid, who is likely to get pushed to power forward for the time being, regardless of whether Noel or Okafor is traded, has no concerns over the logjam.
“I’ve always wanted to be a point guard,” Embiid exclaimed. “So that gives me a chance to get the ball, iso, play one-on-one from the three-point line, the pull-up jumpers. I’ll be more of a spacer, more of a stretch four.”
Here’s more from Philadelphia:
- Ben Simmons took a major step forward in his recovery from a fractured right foot, Brian Seltzer of NBA.com writes. Simmons was able to shoot foul shots without a walking boot for the first time since suffering the Jones fracture.
- Coach Brett Brown is pleased with Simmons’ understanding of the game, Selzer adds in the same piece. “From a non-medical standpoint and just his coach, the evolution that he and I have been able to have in a classroom and on a court, in talking things through over the past few months, is fantastic,” Brown said.
- John Smallwood of the Philadelphia Inquirer examines how the Sixers have failed in previous drafts. The scribe breaks down the team’s last six drafts and finds the team missed out on top talent in nearly every one.
- Earlier today, we learned that rival teams were discouraged with the results of their research on Noel and the Sixers may not be able to get much in return for him as a result.
In all fairness, John Smallwood is an awful writer and his opinions suck.
You are being way to kind.
That’s why he’s at the Inquirer.
Did you write this before or after they played together? Because there were some pretty good moments when they were both on the court together. They had some out of control moments on defense, but it’s not like the Cavs or Heat or even the GSW put it all together in 1 night. I think you’d have to say Noel is the oddman out since he can’t even get his butt on the court. He is looking rather Soft ATM. His trade value is near rock bottom also the longer he is sidelined. This kid I went to HS with writes for FastBreak he’s got a pretty good take on Noel’s value – 15/16 M range, but that’s if he gets on the floor. Extending him with the idea of trading him would probably have been the better option than a lame-duck year.