Tag: Nerlens Noel

Report: Rockets show exploratory interest in signing Nerlens Noel

HoopsHype’s Michael Scotto: “Free agent center Nerlens Noel has drawn exploratory interest from the New York Knicks, Houston Rockets, and Charlotte Hornets.”

Free agent center Nerlens Noel has drawn exploratory interest from the New York Knicks, Houston Rockets and Charlotte Hornets, according to Friday’s report by HoopsHype’s Michael Scotto.

The Rockets traded for veteran center Steven Adams prior to the NBA’s Feb. 8 in-season deadline, but he will not be available until next season due to an injury. Houston also considered moves for big-man depth among players that are available to play this season, but they weren’t able to come to terms on trade compensation.

A free agent signing, which wouldn’t need asset compensation, could be more palatable to general manager Rafael Stone.

Noel, a 10-year NBA veteran, has averaged 7.1 points (54.6% FG), 6.1 rebounds, and 1.5 blocks in 22.0 minutes per game over his career. The 6-foot-10 big man is 29 years old.

If he is signed by the Rockets (24-30), Noel would join Jeff Green and Jock Landale as backup options for head coach Ime Udoka behind incumbent starter Alperen Sengun.

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Lakers had interest in Nerlens Noel before he signed with the Kings

The Lakers reportedly were looking into veteran center Nerlens Noel before he chose to head to the Kings on Friday.

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The Los Angeles Lakers have a pretty impressive roster for the upcoming NBA season, but the one thing they could use is one more serviceable big man that is defensive-minded and has legitimate size for the center position.

They have two roster spots open, and they have made it clear they would like to use one of those spots on such a player. However, the pickings are slim at this point. Bismack Biyombo and Christian Wood have reportedly been L.A.’s two main targets, but perhaps it doesn’t have an extremely high level of interest in either of them.

Nerlens Noel, a veteran center, signed with the Sacramento Kings on Friday, and the Lakers reportedly had some interest in him prior to him choosing his new team.

Via HoopsHype:

“Before Nerlens Noel agreed to a one-year, $3.1 million deal with the Sacramento Kings, the Los Angeles Lakers and Chicago Bulls also expressed exploratory interest in Noel, HoopsHype has learned,” wrote Michael Scotto.

“While the Lakers ultimately didn’t sign Noel, the team remains open to potentially adding a veteran center, league sources told HoopsHype.”

Noel has been hampered by injuries over the years, but he could’ve given Los Angeles some shot blocking in about 10-15 minutes a game. Instead, he will suit up for a divisional rival that is coming off an impressive season and seems to be on an upward trajectory.

Brooklyn Nets not giving center Nerlens Noel another 10-day deal

The Brooklyn Nets will not be bringing back center Nerlens Noel, according to Brian Lewis of the New York Post.

The Brooklyn Nets will not be giving center Nerlens Noel another 10-day contract, according to Brian Lewis of the New York Post. Noel’s initial 10-day deal expired on Wednesday. Even though Brooklyn could use another big to spell breakout center Nic Claxton, the Nets have decided to go in a different direction with their open roster spot.

Noel signed his 10-day contract with the Nets on Mar. 6 after being waived by the Detroit Pistons on Feb. 27. Noel played three games with Brooklyn and averaged one point, three rebounds, and one steal per game while shooting 16.7% from the field.

The three games that Noel played in for the Nets were a 22-point win over the Houston Rockets, a 5-point loss to the Milwaukee Bucks, and a 2-point win over the Denver Nuggets. In those three games, Noel had a combined plus-minus of -13 which may be part of the reason that Noel wasn’t brought back to the team.

As of right now, Brooklyn has an open roster spot so it will be interesting to see how the team decides to fill that spot. For the time being, the backup for Claxton is second-year center Day’Ron Sharpe. Sharpe has not played in the past three games most likely due to the presence of Noel.

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Nets’ Nerlens Noel discusses what joining the team means to him

Nerlens Noels sounds like he’s ready to get started for the Brooklyn Nets according to Brian Lewis of the New York Post.

Brooklyn Nets center Nerlens Noel recently joined the Nets after receiving a buyout from the Detroit Pistons and he seems to be excited about what this Brooklyn team can offer according to tweets by Brian Lewis of the New York Post. He seems to have picked Brooklyn as his next team because of the defensive talent that the organization has and how well everyone plays team defense.

The Nets have been without a backup center that they trust for this entire season. Aside from Day’Ron Sharpe, who has mostly been out of the rotation, Nets head coach Jacque Vaughn has been finding ways to overcome that lack of depth by playing guys like Ben Simmons, Kevin Durant (when he was on the team), and Dorian Finney-Smith as backup centers.

Noel could finally be the answer for the Nets with regards to the backup center spot if he’s able to play well in relief of Nic Claxton. While Claxton has been a breakout player for Brooklyn, it’s clear that the amount of minutes that he’s played thus far are catching up to him and Noel could be relief in that way as well. Vaughn mentioned before Tuesday’s game at the Houston Rockets that Noel will get some minutes so that the team can get a look at him.

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Woj: Brooklyn Nets are signing center Nerlens Noel after buyout from Pistons

Woj says that the Brooklyn Nets are signing center Nerlens Noel after his buyout from the Detroit Pistons.

The Brooklyn Nets are signing center Nerlens Noel to a deal after he reached a buyout with the Detroit Pistons, according to what ESPN’s Adrian Wojnarowski was told by Noel’s agent, George Langberg. Noels was officially waived by the Pistons on Feb. 28 after completing his buyout the previous day.

Since Noel’s buyout was done before Mar. 1, he will be eligible to play in the postseason, assuming that the Nets made it into postseason competition. According to The Athletic’s James L. Edwards III, there were six teams who called the Pistons about a Noel trade, but for some reason, Detroit decided to keep Noel despite not playing him much at all.

Noel, 28, hasn’t played much this season (14 games) as the Pistons were focused on their younger players given their rebuilding status right now. However, Noel can bring some defense and shot-blocking to the table for Brooklyn. Most likely, Noel will share backup center minutes with center Day’Ron Sharpe and forward Dorian Finney-Smith when the Nets decide to go small.

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Five best players on buyout market Lakers should look at

Will the Lakers sign someone from the buyout market? If so, one of these five men could fit the bill.

The Los Angeles Lakers’ roster looks a lot better, or at least a lot more balanced and cohesive, after the three deals they made in the final hours before last Thursday’s NBA trade deadline.

At least on paper, they have more outside shooting, forward depth, a legitimate two-way center other than Anthony Davis and a point guard, D’Angelo Russell, who is a much better fit than Russell Westbrook.

But by no means do the Lakers have a complete roster.

They could use another legitimate 3-and-D wing, as well as one more center who can defend and rebound.

Now that the trade deadline is in the rearview mirror, teams are waiving players they deem superfluous, creating a buyout market that has some interesting bit players.

Los Angeles has one open roster spot available, and it could fill the spot with a player on the buyout market.

These five players could help the Lakers a little if they want to sign with the Purple and Gold.

4 backup big men Sixers should take a look at on the buyout market

Here are four backup big man options the Philadelphia 76ers should take a look at on the buyout market.

The Philadelphia 76ers made their move at the deadline when they moved Matisse Thybulle to the Portland Trail Blazers in a four-team deal that netted them Jalen McDaniels from the Charlotte Hornets in a deal that also brought Philadelphia below the luxury tax line.

The move gives the Sixers another able perimeter defender, but it also doesn’t fix their issue of a backup center.

At the moment, Philadelphia is relying on their duo of Montrezl Harrell and Paul Reed who are both serviceable, but they aren’t necessarily solutions. Harrell is very good on the offensive end and he brings a ton of energy, but he struggles rebounding and defending against bigger centers while Reed is a solid defender, but he fouls a ton and doesn’t offer much in the way of offense.

Therefore, it’s time for the Sixers to turn to the buyout market, which president Daryl Morey says they’ll be active in. There are four possible options for Philadelphia and they are:

Five Boston Celtics buyout candidates for the 2023 NBA postseason

With the $3.2 million disabled player exception available to be used to sign a player in the last year of his deal or a free agent, the Boston Celtics will be able to offer more salary than most other teams.

“Boston is going to pick off whoever they want on the buyout market,” said an anonymous source to Celtics Blog’s Keith Smith regarding the team’s plans for team building beyond the 2023 NBA trade deadline. “They have money and minutes. And they’re a title contender. That checks all the boxes.”

With the $3.2 million disabled player exception available to be used to sign a player in the last year of his deal or a free agent, the Boston Celtics will be able to offer more salary than most other teams, as well as being a contender with some real needs to be filled.

The league awaits potential buyout options that could hit the market soon that might be up the Celtics’ alley — let’s dive into some of the better options out there.

All the players linked to the Boston Celtics in trade rumors

The Boston Celtics have been extremely active on the trade market since Brad Stevens took over as president of basketball operations. They seem more likely than not to make a trade of some kind this week considering they’re one of the title …

The Boston Celtics have been extremely active on the trade market since Brad Stevens took over as president of basketball operations. They seem more likely than not to make a trade of some kind this week considering they’re one of the title favorites this year. The question is, do they make a marginal rotation upgrade or do they swing for something bigger?

As mentioned in this year’s HoopsHype trade guide, the Celtics have the means to get all sorts of trades done. They can move up to three first-round picks in 2025, 2027, and 2029, which they could use to acquire a starting-caliber player. They also have several second-round picks, including three in this year’s upcoming draft that they could part with for some bench reinforcements. Depending on their appetite to increase their $59 million luxury tax bill, they could absorb a player using their $5.9 million trade exception.

Below is a list of players they’ve been linked to and a potential framework for them.

Boston Celtics trade rumble heat check: Renewed interest in Kevin Durant? Grant Williams inquiries?

We’re taking the temperature on the most recent rumbles on what we’re hearing about Boston’s trade plans.

With the 2023 NBA trade deadline just days away from arriving, the Boston Celtics are finding themselves entangled in a number of trade rumors as they so often seem to be.

Some of them make all the sense in the world, some could if you squint very hard, and others simply make no sense whatsoever. So we decided to dive into the most current trade rumbles we have heard with ties to the Celtics ahead of the 3 pm ET moratorium on making deals in the 2022-23 NBA season on this coming Thu., Feb. 9, and grade them based on how likely we think there is to be some fire behind each instance of trade smoke.

So with all that said, let’s get started.