Rumors of a potential Nerlens Noel to Marcus Smart "straight-up" swap between the Philadelphia 76ers and Boston Celtics were recently suggested as both teams continue to eye roster flexibility entering the new season.
The 22-year-old Noel had been the subject of trade rumors ever since the beginning of the summer as the Sixers are projected to have a logjam in their front court this coming season.
With the selection of Ben Simmons as this year's top pick, the highly-anticipated debut of 2014 third overall pick Joel Embiid, and the presence of his fellow incoming super-sophomore Jahlil Okafor, head coach Brett Brown will definitely have a hard time balancing minutes between all of his young big men.
In addition, Philly is in dire need of a point guard that will balance their frontcourt-heavy roster and the team is rumored to be targeting someone who is still young but already experienced NBA play.
Enter the Celtics' 22-year-old, three-year pro Smart.
SB Nation indicated that the Sixers and Celtics "have discussed Marcus Smart and Nerlens Noel in various package deals as far back as draft week 2015", but nothing really came close to pushing through.
However, CBS Sports' Zach Harper recently suggested a "potential straight-up deal" that would swap Smart and Noel directly.
Harper said that the suggested trade will address Philly's "perimeter issues". He also said that "while you could argue you're selling low on Noel here, you could also argue you'd be buying low on Smart".
In contrast with Philadelphia, Boston's current roster is deep in the backcourt and so the two would actually be helping each other out in balancing each one's rosters before they head into the upcoming season.
In trading Smart for Noel, the Celtics risk of losing a quality backup to Isaiah Thomas but would "give them one of the best defensive frontcourts in basketball (if not the best) with Jae Crowder, Noel and (Al) Horford".
Meanwhile, the Sixers is set to get "good value in return" in having Smart as he could be a "potential cornerstone to their future backcourt" in Philadelphia.
The report noted that the fit between Smart and Simmons in terms of ball-handling "isn't perfect", but Philly will get a point guard that "has the kind of drive and grit that the Sixers could use on their roster as they slowly focus on actually winning basketball games".
