Nerlens Noel Trade Rumors: Boston Celtics, L.A. Lakers, And Portland Trail Blazers Out Of Luck?

Nerlens Noel trade rumors may have had a lot of cold water thrown on them Monday (Dec. 19). Many NBA trade rumors have included Noel recently, as the Philadelphia 76ers seemingly have too many centers to work with. The premise being that Noel has to share playing time with Jahlil Okafor and Joel Embiid, but that there aren’t enough minutes to go around. NBA analyst Tom Moore released a report about what 76ers team president Bryan Colangelo has to say about the situation. His responses may come as a surprise to 76ers fans waiting to see a blockbuster trade.

As previously reported by the Inquisitr, Noel spoke with the media about how the coaches have used him since his return from injury. Noel saw only 16 minutes of action (total) in his first two games back, showing that the rotation might leave him on the wrong side of a minutes-sharing situation. After he had spoken about his frustrations with limited playing time, quite a few new NBA trade rumors popped up, linking him to teams like the L.A. Lakers, Boston Celtics, and Portland Trail Blazers. This led to Colangelo having to field a bevy of questions about the situation.

While addressing the Nerlens Noel trade rumors, Colangelo stated that “I don’t feel the need to make a trade. We’ve got a lot of talent.” This statement provides a lot of information about the situation with the Philadelphia 76ers and that the front office may be content to simply play through the growing pains of the three young centers. While it could be very tough for the coaches to find equal playing time for Okafor, Embiid, and Noel in the same games, what it does give the team is a lot of depth for the rest of the NBA season.

While the statements by Colangelo may slow down the current Nerlens Noel trade rumors, it could also be a tactic that NBA fans have seen from other team presidents. This could be a ploy to deal with teams that are trying to get Noel at a bargain level price. The organization may simply be stating that they aren’t willing to just give up Noel without getting something significant in return. It may also show that the 76ers are willing to lose Noel in free agency if it comes to that point during the NBA offseason. It’s not a bad strategy for now.

Last season, with the Philadelphia 76ers, Nerlens Noel played in 67 games (62 starts). He averaged 29.3 minutes, 11.1 points, 8.1 rebounds, 1.8 steals, and 1.5 blocks per game. Noel just turned 22, showing he likely still has a long NBA career in front of him. It wouldn’t be a stretch to say that Noel could easily average a double-double if given the nightly minutes. His current situation in Philadelphia may not allow for that, especially with Jahlil Okafor and Joel Embiid ahead of him in the rotation. It could lead a typical NBA fan to presume that Noel is being underutilized by his current team.

So what does all this mean regarding the NBA trade rumors that continue to involve the Philadelphia 76ers? It seems to suggest that the team is going to take a wait-and-see approach and hope that the value of their trade assets increases over the next two months. With the 76ers way out of the playoff race in the Eastern Conference, the team has no need to rush into a deal. This doesn’t mean that the 76ers won’t revisit the situation after a few months of having a healthy roster, but it becomes very likely that the Nerlens Noel trade rumors won’t lead to a deal taking place soon.

[Featured Image by Mitchell Leff/Getty Images]