Philadelphia 76ers made rookie Joel Embiid available before NBA trade deadline
Joel Embiid and the Jayhawks can move one step closer to a 10th consecutive Big 12 title on Monday.
The Philadelphia 76ers have been in an extensive rebuilding process for quite some time now. The struggling NBA franchise has been trading any player of value in exchange for draft picks over the past few years and made another deal before the NBA trade deadline on Feb. 19.
Reigning Rookie of the Year Michael Carter-Williams was dealt to the Milwaukee Bucks in a three-team deal involving the Phoenix Suns. Philadelphia received a top-five protected draft pick from the Suns via the Los Angeles Lakers in exchange for Carter-Williams.
Although Carter-Williams is a promising young player with a potentially bright future ahead, the 76ers sent dealt him to Milwaukee without hesitation. Not only did Philadelphia send arguably their best player elsewhere, but apparently they were also willing to trade injured rookie Joel Embiid.
According to Mark Heisler of Forbes.com, Embiid was made available ahead of the trade deadline last week:
In an unnoticed development at last week’s trade deadline, the 76ers were still trying to trade up for a top pick in this draft, indicating a willingness to talk about Joel Embiid or any player on their team, an NBA source told Forbes.com.
Yes, that’s the Joel Embiid they drafted No. 3 overall last spring, after compiling the worst record and seeing the Cavaliers and Bucks jump ahead of them in the lottery.
Before it was made known that Embiid’s foot injury would require season-ending surgery, the Kansas product was in contention to be taken with the number one overall pick by the Cleveland Cavaliers. Andrew Wiggins ultimately was taken with the first pick, but Jabari Parker and Embiid were receiving serious consideration from the Cavs.
The 76ers flirting with the idea of trading Embiid without the rookie playing a single game for Philadelphia is interesting to say the least. The selection of Embiid was a surprising move by the 76ers to say the least after taking Nerlens Noel out of Kentucky one year earlier, but it appears Philadelphia wants more high draft picks in the 2015 NBA draft.
If the 76ers end up with the number one overall pick in the upcoming draft, it’ll be interesting to see which direction they go in. Duke’s Jahlil Okafor seems to be the unanimous top prospect with the draft being about four months away on June 25. That consensus could change in the coming months, but if Okafor remains the best player available, the 76ers may try to swing another trade.
