Nerlens Noel has been limited by what head coach Billy Donovan referred to as an ankle tweak, but on Tuesday, the big man was able to return to contact activities in practice, as he participated in intrasquad scrimmages for the first time since last week.
Noel addressed reporters after practice and didn’t sound overly concerned about whether missing the time would amount to a setback.
“I think I’ve been off to the side getting my work, getting my rehab, I’ve been getting one-on-one individual workouts so that’s been great for my conditioning, as well,” Noel said when asked his conditioning.
“I scrimmaged today and it felt good, slight wind, but that gets back quickly. Guys still have the same chemistry guys have had all season and it makes it that much easier for guys to fall back into things.”
According to Donovan, the team was being “overly cautious” with the big man, and them doing so makes plenty of sense.
On the zoom call today, Thunder center Nerlens Noel (ankle sprain) said he was able to scrimmage today. Has spent a portion of camp getting rehab/conditioning work to the side.
— Erik Horne (@ErikkHorne) July 21, 2020
At this point, the Thunder’s long-term priority should be having their team as close to healthy as possible for the playoffs, so a cautious approach is advisable. The club will play their first exhibition game on July 24 against the Boston Celtics. That gives Noel plenty of time to ramp up his activity to play some minutes.
Although Billy Donovan would naturally want his team to head into the playoffs on a high note, the Thunder have already clinched a playoff spot. Since there isn’t any homecourt advantage at stake, many teams will treat the seeding games with less urgency than they would normally treat the final eight games of the regular season. What that could amount to is additional run for a reserve player like Noel. So there will be plenty of opportunities to get him back into tip-top shape before the playoffs begin.
Oklahoma City will enter play on July 30 — the day that play will resume — with a 40-24 record and ownership of the fifth seed in the Western Conference.