By: Brandon Apter, managing editor 
After three years of rebuilding, new President of Basketball Operations Bryan Colangelo wants to transition to a "building" phase. No more focusing on losing to get the top pick, but rather getting that one player to build around in this year's draft and go from there.
Philadelphia has picked third in each of the last two drafts, selecting big men Jahlil Okafor in 2015 and Joel Embiid in 2014. Although Embiid has yet to don a Sixers jersey nearly two years after being drafted, his health and recovering could end up determining Okafor's future in Philadelphia.
"The big unknown with this organization is [Embiid], who has not played an NBA game," Colangelo said. "He certainly has the skill level, the size, the talent to potentially become a star." [CSNPhilly.com]
The word that stands out here is unknown. While Embiid has the potential (everyone's favorite word), it is up in the air as to whether or not his two foot surgeries will have an effect on his ability to perform at a high level in the NBA. For that reason alone, the Sixers should hold on to Jahlil Okafor until they are sure Embiid is an answer for them. Coming into the 2014 and 2015 drafts, both players were highly-regarded, but some believe Embiid's projection to be a generational talent far outweighs Okafor's strong rookie season. If Joel shows that he can be that talent, then I'm sure the Sixers will start listening to serious trade offers for Jahlil. Don't forget, the Sixers still own their own first rounder in 2017 and the Lakers top-3 protected pick for a draft that will be much deeper than this season, so they could wait it out with Embiid and Okafor and determine what to do next year.
Last week, we talked about the Sixers revisiting a trade deadline deal that didn't happen with the Celtics that could have sent Okafor to Boston for the third overall pick in the draft. A possible trade would make sense for both sides with the Celtics lacking a good post presence that can score and the Sixers would have an opportunity to take a point guard prospect in the draft, whether it be Jamal Murray or Kris Dunn. Why is just Okafor being mentioned? Out of the three bigs that the Sixers have, Okafor is the one who would net them the best return with Nerlens Noel highly unlikely to land them a top-5 pick and Embiid untradeable due to injury. Also, we remember fondly how the Okafor-Noel pairing went last season. Who's to say adding Embiid will make it better, but neither of them succeeded at the four very well.
The other side of this is whether or not the Sixers should trade Okafor at all, whether Embiid recovers fully or not. He had some hiccups both on and off the court in his rookie year, but averaged 17.5 points seven boards per game in 53 games last season and showed an offensive ability that many believed gave him the chance to go first overall in 2015. His defense, or lack there of, was criticized, but the kid is only 20 years old and his defense will only improve with more years in the NBA.
There's no questioning that the Philadelphia 76ers will likely have to move on from Okafor, Nerlens Noel or Joel Embiid at some point, but a large part of that revolves around Embiid's foot and whether it will hold up for the upcoming season.
