Philadelphia 76ers: Would Jeff Teague Work With Jahlil Okafor?

According to Shams Charania of The Vertical, the Philadelphia 76ers are discussing a trade involving Nerlens Noel for Jeff Teague. If the trade goes down, how does Teague work next to Jahlil Okafor?

The Philadelphia 76ers have been listening to trade offers for both Nerlens Noel and Jahlil Okafor, but one trade in particular is starting to heat up.

A trade between the Boston Celtics and the Philadelphia 76ers involving the 3rd pick in the draft and Jahlil Okafor was gaining momentum from fan perspectives, however that’s not the trade that has people talking.

The Philadelphia 76ers and the Atlanta Hawks are again discussing a trade involving Jeff Teague, this time involving defensively-skilled big man Nerlens Noel. If you recall, the two teams discussed a trade involving Teague at the deadline but the Sixers were offering Ish Smith, Nik Stauskas, and future picks.

Now, this trade deal is still simply in discussion and the deal could very well fall through as it did at the trade deadline, but what if it went through? If it did, this would almost solidify Jahlil Okafor’s future with the Philadelphia 76ers. Adding in the potential number one pick in Ben Simmons or Brandon Ingram, the Philadelphia 76ers could be trying to form somewhat of a core.

More from Philadelphia 76ers

• 3 Reasons the 76ers Should Poach Blake Griffin From the Celtics
• 3 Most Overpaid 76ers Heading Into the 2023 Season
• Ranking Daryl Morey’s 3 Biggest Mistakes with 76ers
• 3 Teams Crazy Enough to Trade for James Harden
• James Harden Putting Career in Jeopardy With Holdout Threat

In the immediate future however, it will be interesting to see how Jeff Teague and Jahlil Okafor would coexist. Teague ran the offense in Atlanta with Al Horford being a main piece in the offense.

Horford, like Okafor, excels in the post but has more polished skills in every other facet in the game than the rookie center. Where the Hawks excelled is in the PnR game.

Okafor has distinctly struggled running the PnR, but has the ability to improve. Teague would also be the highest quality, and one of the quickest, guards the Philadelphia 76ers have seen in the past few seasons, so he may still be able to find a way to work the PnR even without Jahlil Okafor’s inconsistent screen setting.

Teague is a dynamic scorer on offense, but he’s at his best when driving to the left-side of the lane. This could create problems as Okafor tends to position himself on the left side of the bucket before getting the ball. What could make the duo work is Okafor’s decent ability to pass the ball out of the post and Teague’s improved outside shooting.

Teague has shot 35.5% from behind the three-point line, and had a career year from outside last year shooting 40% with a career high in 3-point attempts. His shooting ability could serve as an outlet for Okafor when facing trouble down low.

Jahlil Okafor is able to create offense from down low, whether it’s for himself or his teammates, and Jeff Teague would be a huge beneficiary of open looks with the defense focusing on the high scoring big man down low.

Again, the deal is not imminent and could very well fall through. This may, however, be a signal that Bryan Colangelo and the Philadelphia 76ers believe Okafor will be a key part of this team moving forward. The deal is iffy itself, as Noel is already an elite shot blocker. To flip him for a 28-year old point guard for potentially one season is concerning, but this is an example of the new chapter in the Philadelphia 76ers plan.

Next: Ish Smith's Future Dependent On Nerlens Noel

Getting rid of Noel, as it is for trading any young player, has its risks, but Teague at his best is still amongst the top 15 point guards in the league and the team must start bringing in polished talent to complement their building core. I’m not convinced that this is the start of a Philadelphia 76ers fire-sale, but these types of trades may become a norm.