The Sixers are far from dead. Still atop the Atlantic Division with 17 games to play, there's an overwhelmingly good chance that they at least make the playoffs. Likelier still, they'll finish with a better winning percentage than last year (.500) and a higher seed in the Eastern Conference. But there's always a but. A big but.
Since starting off the season 20-9, they've gone 7-13 and have only beaten three teams that could be described as anything resembling "good": the Knicks, the Jazz, and the Celtics twice. The poor outside shooting we have always worried about with this team has reared its bricklaying head. The lack of any inside presence on either end of the floor hurts every game. The team isn't taking care of the basketball quite as well as they were earlier. People are rioting in the streets.
The likelihood is, as most of us have come to accept, the Sixers will give a team a run for their money in the first round of the playoffs, possibly take the series depending on matchup, and ultimately fall to a better team in the 2nd round. That's not a bad thing. They're still so young in most places that a loss to the eventual champion Miami Heat should be seen as an improvement. But the Big But is: they're still a misshapen team that gets by on defense and transition rather than a legitimate half court set. That won't consistently work against good teams.
What would come the closest to solving this problem would be a big man. A low post threat with the ability to block shots and adjust the other team's attack could vault this team into actual legitimacy rather than maddening inconsistency. Unless Dwight Howard has an aneurysm and picks Philadelphia as his hot spot destination ("Cheesesteaks and Billy Penn, Dwight!"), they'll need to find this big man in the draft or via trade. And since they figure to pick in the early 20's of the draft, a trade is the likeliest option.
Between Jrue Holiday, Evan Turner, and Andre Iguodala you simultaneously have three inexpendable players with three absolutely replaceable ones. All three of them, together, could form the best defensive bottom three in the league, and they probably already do. But their parts are too similar and with the glaring needs up front, one of them may have to go to bring in the kind of talent this team needs to get over the hump. Elton Brand has been great, but he's got a fat expiring contract coming up and an Amnesty Clause could be in his future. Spencer Hawes was terrific early on, but has come back down to Earth after his Achilles injury and simple regression. With his qualifying offer guaranteeing nothing but this year, there's a good chance the Sixers will feature a completely new frontcourt next season.
Thus, we've come to our question. If you had to trade one of Jrue, Evan, and Andre, which one would you trade? The return is completely unknown, but we've all had our eyes on Derrick Favors and Enes Kanter (with Al Jefferson and Paul Millsap to a lesser extent) for a while. They need a point guard and they're not exactly stacked with wings either, though I think Alec Burks and Gordon Hayward will grow up nicely. Who would you send to the theoretical team gifting us a big man? Your response should dictate how quickly you feel the team will win (i.e. not quickly - trade Dre), how much you believe in Jrue's point guard abilities, and whether or not ET is a bust.
If the Sixers are to trade one, which Tom Moore believes is almost a foregone conclusion, who's the goat?