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Nerlens Noel did not back down from his stance that the Philadelphia 76ers' logjam at center is "silly" and "doesn't make any sense" on Monday at media day. While Sixers president Bryan Colangelo maintained that they aren't under any pressure to make moves in the short term, Noel made it clear that he's not happy that the front office failed to balance the roster in the summer.

From the Associated Press' Chuck Gormley:

"I don't see a way of it working," Noel said Monday, one day before the Sixers' first full workout in their new practice facility along the New Jersey riverfront across from Philadelphia. "It's just a logjam.

"You've got three talented centers that can play 30-plus minutes a night and three centers can't play 30 minutes a night. That's that. Things need to be situated," Noel said. "Obviously, somebody's got to be moved around. It's a tough situation, but I can only say so much because I have no say and no power."

...

"Wait and see? I can't say I do understand that," Noel said. "I just don't think it makes too much sense to come into the season with such a heavy lineup at the center position, I don't know what there is to wait and see."

Nerlens Noel at the Sixers' new practice facility
Nerlens Noel wants a change to be made. USATSI

Noel has every incentive to want a change. He's eligible for a contract extension now, and if he doesn't sign one, he'll be a restricted free agent next summer. Last year, his numbers were far better when playing center than when playing power forward next to the defense-and-rebounding-averse Jahlil Okafor, and now the Sixers need to find minutes for Joel Embiid, too.

As he complained about the situation, Noel stressed that this was a basketball concern, not a personal one:


Colangelo tried to preserve some semblance of leverage and save face. He told reporters that the Sixers are "thrilled to be in the situation we're in and have that depth," per the Associated Press, adding that they have "a lot of time for things to work out" and are not "up against any kind of deadline."

Noel's comments put Colangelo in a tricky spot. If it was easy for the front office to move Noel or Okafor and get significant value in return, then one or both of them would be gone already. Publicly scolding Noel wouldn't help matters, so Colangelo elected to dispute the center's point of view while saying it was understandable.

"I think Nerlens did a pretty good job sizing up what we have," Colangelo said, via the Bucks County Courier Times' Tom Moore. "I don't know if I was affected at all by Nerlens' comments or the players were affected at all."

Regardless of what Colangelo says publicly, it would obviously be best for Philadelphia to trade one of the big men for a wing player. The problem with that is there are few teams that need one of those bigs and have an excess of wings that the Sixers would want. With training camp starting on Tuesday, coach Brett Brown will have to try to make the best of this somehow, and Noel will have to compete with Okafor and Embiid for playing time.

Philadelphia veteran Elton Brand said the competition will be "a bloodbath."