The Boston Celtics is still emerging as the top landing spot for the Philadelphia 76ers' Nerlens Noel and Jahlil Okafor as the February trade deadline draws near.
Noel and Okafor are two of the biggest names being mentioned in trade rumors for the past several months. The two young centers are currently in the Sixers jam-packed frontcourt, which also includes Joel Embiid, Dario Saric, Ben Simmons and veteran Ersan Ilyasova.
Speculations abound that either Noel or Okafor or both will be traded in or before the Feb. 23 deadline as they are considered as starting-caliber centers together with current starter Embiid.
Inquisitr noted that while each of the three players "has his own strengths", having any combination together on the floor at the same time has its own specific problems.
One suggested solution is to make Noel a third-tier bench player while Okafor becomes Embiid's primary backup, but the former reportedly "believes he is a starter". Noel had also expressed that he is willing to be traded to get out of the unwanted situation.
Boston has been linked to both Noel and Okafor in the past year as the Celtics are reportedly looking for a young big man, but no deals were officially made despite the numerous trade rumors.
According to CSN Philly, any of the two players would be a strong addition to head coach Brad Stevens' lineup, which already has Isaiah Thomas, Avery Bradley, Jae Crowder, and Al Horford.
With Okafor, the Celtics receive a scoring center that they had been looking for while Horford can slide back to his more comfortable power forward position. Meanwhile, Noel could pair with Thomas to implement an "uptempo" game for Boston.
However, it was also mentioned that the Celtics must give up a package that includes Bradley to earn the agreement of the Sixers. It is highly unlikely that Boston will give up Bradley, though, as he is one of their most productive players as well as an affordable one with a salary of only $8 million per season.