Philadelphia 76ers and Los Angeles Lakers are both in the bottom of their respective conferences.
This is one reason why they are constantly dragged into several NBA trade rumors.
The latest NBA trade mill has the two lowly teams linked to each other. Several analysts suggest that Sixers and Lakers should swap the players they got from the August draft ceremony.
The former got Jahlil Okafor as third overall while Purple and Gold selected 19-year old point guard D' Angelo Russell as second overall.
Right now, the two's career are going opposite ways. Okafor is leading the rookies in points while Russell is taking some time to adapt to the system coach Byron Scott is implementing.
ESPN's Chard Ford and Kevin Pelton fueled an NBA trade rumor involving Russell and Okafor.
"And there might be a team or two out there where Okafor fits better," Ford said. "I especially wonder about the Lakers. D'Angelo Russell has been a tough fit in LA. The Lakers flipped from Okafor to Russell the night of the draft. Would the two teams consider swapping the two players? That would effectively be a draft-night trade, a few months later."
Pelton, on the other hand thinks Okafor will soon lose his spot with the Sixers.
"On a roster that includes Noel and Embiid, and would seem to want to play fast, it's not clear how Okafor fits for the long term," he said.
SB Nation also jumped on the NBA trade rumor by pretending they swap the two players' jerseys.
"Having Okafor setting up on the block would've helped the Lakers play inside-out more often, which would've then set up more open looks for those guards," it said. "Both Clarkson and Young are shooting brilliantly on catch-and-shoot three-pointers this season, so they'd be able to take advantage of all that attention on Okafor."
For D'Angelo Russell:
"With Russell on board, Brett Brown could've used the pace-and-space attack the team had last year as opposed to the slower group this year with Okafor. Philadelphia's offense was the worst in the league last year (it's even worse this year), but that was a function of a lack of talent to run the system. Turning over the keys of that system to a big-time prospect at point guard could've resulted in a more efficient group."
What do you think of this NBA trade rumor? Did Sixers and Lakers made mistakes during the 2015 NBA draft?
