Brandon Apter, Sports Talk Philly editor 
The Philadelphia 76ers have dealt one of their big men and it isn't the one people expected. According to Adrian Wojnorwoski, the Sixers are planning to send Nerlens Noel to the Dallas Mavericks for Justin Anderson, Andrew Bogut and a protected first rounder, which will probably not convey this year.
The Dallas Mavericks reached agreement on a deal to acquire Philadelphia 76ers center Nerlens Noel, league sources told The Vertical.
The Mavericks will send a protected 2017 first-round pick, forward Justin Anderson and center Andrew Bogut to the 76ers for Noel, league sources said.
ESPN's Marc Stein reports that the pick will be top-18 protected in the upcoming June draft. ESPN'a Zach Lowe tweets that if the pick doesn't convey this season, which will likely be the case, it becomes two second rounders, thus making this deal a real head-scratcher.
Sources: If Sixers do not receive Mavs top-18 protected pick this season, it converts to 2 2nd-round picks: Mavs 2nds in 2017 and 2018.
— Zach Lowe (@ZachLowe_NBA) February 23, 2017
In Wojnarowski's column, he says that the trade of Noel likely means the Sixers will retain Jahlil Okafor.
This is somewhat surprising news, considering Noel had not really been talked about much in trade rumors until Wednesday. He's been serving as Joel Embiid's primary back-up and has provided the Sixers with strong defense while Joel has missed time. The two had an embrace at practice after Noel was informed of the news. Embiid also took to Twitter to let everyone know how much Noel has meant to him and the process.
Joel Embiid saying goodbye to Nerlens Noel: pic.twitter.com/7iK48eStUj
— Tom Moore (@tmoore76ers) February 23, 2017
Gonna miss my best friend but I'm happy for him… He represented the process since he was here from the start.. One more time>>> Trust It
— Joel Embiid (@JoelEmbiid) February 23, 2017
Nerlens is set to become a restricted free agent after the season, so it seems like Philadelphia may not have been too confident in signing him to a big deal. If Embiid remains healthy, there wasn't a true long-term spot for him with consistent playing time. Woj goes on to report that the Mavs and Noel will be working on an extension and that Dallas has coveted the big man for quite some time leading up to the trade.
In 29 games for the Sixers this season, Noel was averaging 8.9 points and 5.0 rebounds.
The Sixers are getting Justin Anderson and Andrew Bogut in this deal, but according to TNT's David Aldridge, Bogut will likely be headed elsewhere before the deadline hits at 3:00 p.m.
Philly likely re-routing Andrew Bogut, just acquired from Dallas w/Justin Anderson & pick for Nerlens Noel. Boston possibility, per source.
— David Aldridge (@daldridgetnt) February 23, 2017
Anderson, 23, is averaging just 6.5 points per game this season, but as a former first round pick, he could develop with more playing time in Philadelphia. Back in October, his game was compared to Harrison Barnes, which would be nice considering the Sixers need for shooters.
