Jahlil Okafor (Photo : NBAE via Getty Images)
The NBA trade rumors continue to hound the Chicago Bulls and Philadelphia 76ers, two teams that may have very different rosters from this season's lineup.
The Sixers were rocked by the recent development that GM Sam Hinkie, the architect of "The Process" that had the Sixers mounting the most brazen tanking effort in league history, had stepped down.
ESPN had the report and also obtained correspondence from Hinkie addressed to the Philadelphia 76ers.
"Given all the changes to our organization, I no longer have the confidence that I can make good decisions on behalf of investors in the Sixers -- you," he wrote. "So I should step down. And I have."
The report also stated that sources have divulged the team's intention of hiring Bryan Colangelo, a former Executive of the Year, which would diminish Hinkie's autonomy even further. Colangelo's father, Jerry was hired as Philadelphia's new chairman of basketball operations last December.
With the presence of Mike D'Antoni as an associate coach, it is also predicted that aside from the commitment to compete, the team will also have a faster offense.
The first order of business would be their logjam at the center spot. CSN Chicago contributor Mark Schanowski has confirmed that Joel Embiid is close to making his debut.
"Meanwhile, the 7-foot-1 Embiid has been tearing it up in team workouts recently, finally looking like the player everyone had scouted leading up to the 2014 draft," the report stated. "Colangelo and the rest of the Sixers' brain trust believe Embiid might be the better long-term option at center, which means Okafor could be available in the days leading up to the June 23 draft."
Schanowski continued: "Could the Bulls pry him loose with an offer of Nikola Mirotic and a first-round pick? Or would it take a pair of No. 1s and either Mirotic or Taj Gibson to get Colangelo's attention?"
While the Bulls also have the intention of employing a faster pace, it has not really abandoned the center position altogether. They would probably let free agent Joakim Noah walk and also Pau Gasol, but acquiring a young and skilled post scorer like Okafor could fit well in their plans.
For the Sixers, Nikola Mirotic and/or Taj Gibson gives them experienced players (although the bulk of Mirotic's tenure was overseas) in contrast to their current roster.
Any trade for veterans in the hopes of competing soon would be a Colangelo move, and now that Hinkie's gone, that's all we should anticipate from Philadelphia.
