There have haven much noise surrounding the trade talks of Philadelphia 76ers big man Jahlil Okafor. Now that the National Basketball Association trade deadline is just a few weeks away and the 76ers are finally competing, trading the sophomore big man for an asset is not far from happening.
Philadelphia is experiencing a logjam in its frontcourt and has reportedly put Okafor and Nerlens Noel in the trade market now that the 76ers put the franchise's future in Joel Embiid. However, with the emergence of Noel and with Okafor receiving consecutive DNP's, his days in Philadelphia could be numbered, NJ.com reported.
When Embiid was sidelined due to an injury, Okafor was the best guy for the 76ers as he delivered 17.5 points and 7.0 rebounds in his rookie season. But with Embiid playing like an All-Star and Noel fitting Philadelphia head coach Brett Brown's fast paced offense, the sophomore big man was relegated to the bench and did not play six times in the last nine games.
From averaging 30.0 minutes last year, Okafor now sees action for only 22.8 minutes per game and saw a decrease in production with an average of 11.2 points and 4.9 boards. Now that the 76ers are rolling on a three-game winning streak and are suddenly on playoff contention, they are looking for an asset that would boost their playoff bid.
The 21-year-old slotman could be dealt to the Toronto Raptors who is in bad need of an offensively gifted center, Raptors Rapture reported. Kyle Lowry's contract will expire in 2018 and if the Raptors want to win with their point guard at the helm, they need reinforcement that would help them get over Eastern Conference rivals Cleveland Cavaliers.
Toronto could trade Cory Joseph and a 2017 first round pick to acquire Okafor and financially, it would work for both teams. Watch the video to see how Okafor could dominate the paint if given a chance by another team: