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NBA Rumors: Pelicans, Lakers, 76ers in three team swap?

By Bret Stuter

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NBA Rumors: With the Philadelphia 76ers looking for back court help, and the Los Angeles Lakers seeking to move D’Angelo Russell, the New Orleans Pelicans seem to be the mystery third team in talks.

It appears that the imminent 2016 NBA Draft is a deadline of sorts — a deadline to teams seeking to set the slate clean, start over. It appears one such team is the Philadelphia 76ers, who have been linked the subject of virtually innumerable rumors about the possibility of moving one of their young centers, either Jahlil Okafor or Nerlens Noel.

On the other side of the country, the Los Angeles Lakers are also trying to reset their roster.  Their first year’s experience with point guard D’Angelo Russell did not turn out as they had hoped.  With some poor decisions off the court and with a new head coach by the name of Luke Walton, the Lakers believe that this is the right time to consider distancing themselves from their rookie point guard and starting anew.

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The only problem?  They don’t see the Philadelphia 76ers Jahlil Okafor as the right fit for the team either.  What to do… what to do…

If only there was some team… some NBA team… with a top draft pick who could bridge the gap?
Some team like, say, the New Orleans Pelicans, who sit on a top draft pick and who would be interested in taking the Philadelphia 76ers center in exchange for draft picks.

Well, the pieces to the rumor are set. We have the rumors of the New Orleans Pelicans in pursuit of Los Angeles Lakers’ point guard D’Angelo Russell. Simultaneously, we have rumors of the New Orleans Pelicans in talks with the Philadelphia 76ers for Jahlil Okafor.  But the real story may be a combination of the two.

You see, the pieces exchanged by the Pelicans for Russell in that scenario are the sixth overall pick of the 2016 NBA draft. That pick gives the Lakers an opportunity to exercise a mulligan for the back court, selecting any of several possible pieces at six — all the while preserving their second overall pick of the 2016 NBA draft.  In essence, the team could walk away from the draft with Brandon Ingram and a top point guard.

The Philadelphia 76ers would exchange Okafor for New Orleans Pelicans center Alexis Ajinca, as well as Lakers point guard D’Angelo Russell.  Why Ajinca?  He is the center brought to the Toronto Raptors by Colangelo back in 2011, a veteran presence in the front court which gives Colangelo that veteran presence off the bench.  But the other piece is D’Angelo Russell, a point guard whose strengths lie in shooting — the perfect match in a lineup where the ball handling migrates to the Ben Simmons, who is expected to take on a point forward role.

So what drives the New Orleans Pelicans to make this deal?  They get a stellar center in Jahlil Okafor to pair up with their power forward Anthony Davis.  While they are looking at the back court in many rumors, the reality is that they simply want to improve their team.  With Okafor, the team does just that — adding a strong offensive presence at the five but also a young player who could drop back to the four.

This trade makes a great deal of sense for all of the parties involved – giving each a greater value with their acquired pieces than the original team.  That’s typically the motivator for such a complex trade.

Next: Philadelphia 76ers Trade Rumors: Are the Boston Celtics a Good Trade Suitor?

Keep your eyes on this one.  If the Philadelphia 76ers are unimpressed with the sincerity of the Boston Celtics in any possible trade scenarios, they have other options.  This three team trade appears to have all of the pieces to give reason to pursue.