NBA trade rumors have followed the Philadelphia 76ers and their trio of talented young big men for months. The Sixers have Joel Embiid, Jahlil Okafor, and Nerlens Noel on the roster, but not enough playing time for all of them. Okafor was the subject of numerous NBA trade rumors over the summer, but more recently, it seems that Noel has become the focus of Philadelphia’s efforts to make a deal for one of their centers.

According to Sports Illustrated, Nerlens Noel is exactly what the Trail Blazers need to take them to the next level. Noel is an athletic rim protector who can also score on the fast break or off of rebounds. In a related story, CSN Philly discusses the difficult start swingman Evan Turner has had in Portland after signing a four-year, $70 million contract this past summer. Turner is playing poorly and the criticism has begun to mount from both Blazers fans and the media.

Evan Turner [Image by Matthew Stockman/Getty Images]

Evan Turner played for current 76ers head coach Brett Brown for less than one season, but Brown has publicly expressed his admiration for Turner, as evidenced by this story published by the Boston Globe. It certainly appears that Brett Brown would love to have Evan Turner back in a Sixers uniform, and with Turner struggling to fit in with the Trail Blazers, a reunion between Turner and his former team seems possible.

Current NBA trade rumors are pointing toward a deal between the Philadelphia 76ers and Portland Trail Blazers. The rumored trade scenario would see Evan Turner and a first-round draft pick (the 2018 selection that originally belonged to the Cleveland Cavaliers) going to the Sixers. In return, the Trail Blazers would receive Nerlens Noel and point guard Sergio Rodriguez. This would be a legal trade under NBA rules, as confirmed by the ESPN NBA Trade Machine, so let’s see how plausible this swap would otherwise be for both of these teams.

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The Philadelphia 76ers clearly need to move one of their centers, and it seems that they have settled on Nerlens Noel as the odd man out. If the Sixers made this deal, Evan Turner would probably see significant playing time, perhaps at both shooting guard and small forward. Jerryd Bayless is expected to miss the rest of the season with a left wrist injury, so this transaction would leave T.J. McConnell as the only point guard on Philadelphia’s roster. Turner found success during his last stint with the 76ers as a “point forward,” and he would likely play a similar role if this trade went down.

Brett Brown and Evan Turner when Turner was a member of the Philadelphia 76ers [Image by Matt Slocum/AP Images]

For the Portland Trail Blazers, this swap would bring them a defensive-minded center that would add a new dimension to the team. The Blazers are such a guard-dominant team (Damian Lillard and C.J. McCollum) that they need frontcourt players who don’t need a lot of touches to be effective, so Noel would seem to be a good fit. Sergio Rodriguez would have a shot to win the backup point guard spot, but he wouldn’t play much on this team. Rodriguez’s contract expires at the end of this season, so that would be advantageous to Portland once free agency begins next summer.

The latest NBA trade rumors are buzzing about a potential deal between the Philadelphia 76ers and Portland Trail Blazers. If Brett Brown and the Sixers’ brass like and trust Evan Turner as much as has been reported, they would probably make this trade to bring Turner back to Philly. The Trail Blazers seem to be disenchanted with Turner, and considering how useful Nerlens Noel would be to Portland, they would also be likely to agree to this transaction. In the final analysis, most NBA trade rumors can be debunked, but this is one to watch as trade talks are just beginning to heat up in the NBA.

[Featured Image by Chris Szagola/AP Images]