By Annie Ross
Well, now, Sixers fans.
This offseason is already looking like a lot of fun!
Yahoo Sports is reporting that the Sixers are speaking with the Atlanta Hawks about a deal involving power forward/center Nerlens Noel (above) and point guard Jeff Teague.
Noel Has been a solid young piece, but with Joel Embiid expected to finally be healthy enough to play this season and Jahlil Okafor also in the mix, the Sixers have too many front court players in need of minutes to develop, and if all three players are healthy, it makes sense to deal one for help at another position.
About the timing?
With the NBA Draft on June 23 and with free agency set to get going on July 1, it might make more sense to see what players you can acquire there before dealing Noel, a quality defensive big man on a rookie scale contract, for a serviceable but middle-of-the-pack point guard who turns 28 years old on June 10.
The other issue is Teague’s contract. It’s certainly affordable at $8.55 million, but it only goes through the end of next season. Giving up Noel for a player who could leave in free agency after one year doesn’t seem like a wise decision, and if the intention is to re-sign Teague on a long-term deal in the summer of 2017, with the salary cap spiking significantly both this summer and next, it would come at a considerable cost.
If the report is true, these are only discussions at this point, and a deal could involve other players and draft picks to eventually become more equitable for both sides. But as it stands with this limited amount of information, Sixers fans wouldn’t be at all happy with the first major roster decision under the team’s new regime.
