National Basketball Association

NBA Rumors: Toronto Raptors among teams interested in Nerlens Noel

Published Jun. 30, 2017 6:28 p.m. ET

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ESPN reported that the Toronto Raptors are among the teams interested in Nerlens Noel, who is “very available” in trades.

If there’s one person in Philadelphia that doesn’t trust the process, it’s Nerlens Noel. There’s more than one process he doesn’t trust too, since that’s what Joel Embiid is insisting people call him these days.

Noel was ruled out for the first 3-5 weeks of the season due to a knee injury, but by all accounts, he wants out of the picture entirely. And the emergence of Embiid means the Philadelphia 76ers are more than willing to part ways with him.

According to a report by Marc Stein, Nerlens Noel is “very available” in trades, and the Toronto Raptors are one of the teams interested. They could use help at the frontcourt after an injury to Jared Sullinger thrust rookie Pascal Siakam into the starting lineup. While he had a good debut, he looks like a rookie on the court and his skillset is still very raw.

Toronto’s other rookie, Jakob Poeltl, has played well so far. In their last win over the Washington Wizards, he was a +10 and finished with five rebounds and six points. But all things considered, he’s not as gifted defensively as Noel is.

Ever since the departure of Bismack Biyombo, many wondered how the Raptors’ second unit could cope with such a big defensive loss. Having started 3-1, they’ve picked up where they’ve left off.

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But the ultimate goal it to take out Cleveland, and their current lineup is in no shape to do that. Even if they added Noel, he’s a restricted free agent next year, and they could be giving up valuable assets for a player who could be pricey to re-sign based on whatever offers come in.

While some teams will be interested in Noel, his injury history might keep the Sixers from netting a big return. Others may be holding out hope for Paul Millsap to become available, but the Atlanta Hawks have played well, and are probably not interested in selling a high-priced asset at this moment.

Whatever the Sixers do with Nerlens, they need to clear up their logjam at center. The Process may be playing well, but they’re still 0-4. And if they do end up trading Noel, the return better be worth it considering he’s one of their best defensive players. But given their drafting history, as well as their recent acquisition of Ersan Ilyasova, it seems like the Sixers are only interested in frontcourt players.