Although I would never wish any harm to fall upon a fellow human being (complete lie), the news that Rajon Rondo has torn his ACL makes me happy for a variety of reasons. For one, the Sixers only trail the Celtics for the 8th seed in the Eastern Conference by 2 games. That's right. TWO. FREAKNG. GAMES. Now, I know that you tankers out there think that being all "OMG PLAYOFFS GUYZ" is not particularly beneficial for the team's future. But just think: in a few weeks we should be getting a presumably healthy Andrew Bynum back. We already have Jrue performing at an All-Star level. Who's to say we can't make a deep playoff run?

In addition, the Celtics may decide that now is the time to start tanking themselves, potentially resulting in a fire sale of their stars. So the question is, should the Sixers try to make a trade for Pierce or Garnett? If the Sixers are confident that Bynum will return and reach the level of performance he was at before the injury, I think the answer is yes. Pierce and Garnett are both aging, but their contracts are 2 years and 3 years long, respectively. And the truth is, both of them are still above-average players. To the trade machine!

Trade #1
Boston receives: Spencer Hawes, Evan Turner, Arnett Moultrie
Philly receives: Paul Pierce

If Boston chooses to enter rebuilding mode, then Turner and Moultrie could be valuable pieces for them. For us, Pierce would be the final piece of a team ready for a championship run. A starting lineup of Jrue-JRich/Wright-Pierce-Thad-Bynum? I think yes. Extra bonus: no more Wight Howard!

Trade #2
Boston receives: Thad Young, Kwame Brown, Arnett Moultrie
Philly receives: Kevin Garnett

Okay, I'll be the first to admit that this trade is not as good as the first. Garnett's rapidly declining health and effectiveness, the extra year on his contract, and giving up Thad makes this trade considerably less attractive. But if I'm the Sixers, I'd still do it. Garnett would be an improvement on both the glass and on defense over Young. Garnett's Defensive Rating is a stellar 100, one year after putting up a league-leading 94, while Thad's DRtg is a 104. As for rebounding, Garnett has a Total Rebound Percentage of 14.2%. That's markedly better than Thad's 11.5%.

Thanks for reading, and have at it in the comments!