Tag: Nerlens Noel

Rockets reportedly hoping for ‘Capela lite’ on 2020-21 roster

“They want to at least have the ability to play different styles,” ESPN’s Tim MacMahon said. “Not just the all small, all the time.”

The Rockets are belived to be happy with the February trade that brought versatile forward Robert Covington to Houston at the cost of shipping starting center Clint Capela to Atlanta.

However, they would still like to replace some of Capela’s value as a traditional big man with rebounding and rim protection, as well as a lob threat in pick-and-roll scenarios with James Harden.

ESPN reporter Tim MacMahon, who regularly covers the Rockets, said this on Brian Windhorst’s latest The Hoop Collective podcast:

They would like to have a [Clint] Capela-lite type of center on the roster. Not necessarily in the starting lineup, but on the roster, they want to at least have the ability to play different styles. Not just the all small, all the time. I was told that was the plan last year, when they made the Covington trade. They thought they could backfill that spot.

The name that was brought up to me was Nerlens Noel. They thought they could get a deal done with OKC at the deadline to get Noel. That didn’t happen. They had other deals that also fell through. Noel has been a productive player in OKC the last couple years on a minimum [contract]. He can catch lobs, he can switch defensively, and he can give them a different look as a guy coming off that bench.

With Houston reportedly poised to spend its taxpayer Mid-Level Exception (MLE), which was worth roughly $5.7 million last season, a big man could be a realistic target in free agency for new GM Rafael Stone.

Noel will be among the available centers in 2020 free agency.

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Rockets reportedly plan to spend taxpayer Mid-Level Exception

The Rockets reportedly plan to spend the full taxpayer Mid-Level Exception, worth ~$5.7 million, and would like a “Capela lite” big man.

Led by new GM Rafael Stone, the Houston Rockets reportedly plan to spend their taxpayer Mid-Level Exception (MLE) this offseason as they seek to upgrade the roster around James Harden and Russell Westbrook.

This year’s precise taxpayer MLE level has yet to be finalized, but it was at approximately $5.7 million last season. There’s a larger non-taxpayer MLE available to teams at roughly $9.2 million, but it implements a hard salary cap that cannot be exceeded under any circumstances. Thus, using the taxpayer MLE offers the most flexibility for all scenarios.

For teams like the Rockets who are above the NBA’s salary cap, the MLE is the top financial tool available for upgrading their roster.

ESPN reporter Tim MacMahon, who regularly covers the Rockets, said this on Brian Windhorst’s latest The Hoop Collective podcast:

They do plan to spend the $5.7 million. That’s their Mid-Level Exception without hard-capping themselves. Now, I was told last year that they planned on spending their Mid-Level, and the year before. So, it’s one of those… believe it when you see it. But, that’s what they’re saying.

The other thing is, they would like to have a [Clint] Capela-lite type of center on the roster. Not necessarily in the starting lineup, but on the roster, they want to at least have the ability to play different styles. Not just the all small, all the time. I was told that was the plan last year, when they made the Covington trade [at the February deadline]. They thought they could backfill that spot. The name that was brought up to me was Nerlens Noel. They thought they could get a deal done with OKC at the deadline to get Noel. That didn’t happen. They had other deals that also fell through.

Noel has been a productive player in OKC the last couple years on a minimum [contract]. He can catch lobs, he can switch defensively, and he can give them a different look as a guy coming off that bench.

The Rockets did spend a portion of their MLE last offseason to give a three-year contract to promising young forward Danuel House Jr., who was very unlikely to accept a minimum offer. Because House had only signed with Houston during the 2018-19 season, they did not have any financial tool (such as Bird rights) outside of an exception to retain him. So while the MLE was largely used, it didn’t bring in a roster upgrade.

But this offseason, none of Houston’s internal free agents without Bird rights have anywhere near the market value that House did in 2019.

Thus, if Stone truly has the approval of owner Tilman Fertitta to spend that taxpayer MLE, Houston should be able to bring in a capable role player worthy of rotation minutes next season. Spending the MLE would likely push the Rockets into luxury tax territory, which they’ve yet to pay since Fertitta officially became owner in October 2017.

Luxury tax levels for 2020-21 have yet to be set, with negotiations still ongoing due to unexpected revenue losses from COVID-19.

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Rockets reportedly tried to trade for Nerlens Noel at 2020 deadline

The deal didn’t get done, but with Noel set to become a free agent this offseason, Houston might again pursue the athletic big man.

According to Tim MacMahon of ESPN, the Houston Rockets didn’t want to completely commit to smaller lineups as part of their flurry of moves at this past season’s trade deadline in February 2020.

Rather, it happened in part because a planned deal for an established backup center didn’t work out following the blockbuster trade of center Clint Capela for versatile forward Robert Covington.

Per MacMahon, Houston’s target was Nerlens Noel of the Oklahoma City Thunder. Here’s how he described it on Zach Lowe’s podcast:

They obviously went all in on micro-ball, but they thought at the time that they could find a bargain big man. If Clint Capela was a full-service Marriott, they thought they could find a Courtyard by Marriott type of big man to at least be in the rotation. .

For example, they had discussions before the trade deadline and were optimistic and thought that they could get a deal done to bring in Nerlens Noel.

The Rockets did trade for Bruno Caboclo in the final hours before the deadline, in hopes that he could potentially fill a similar role. However, he struggled in limited opportunities with the Rockets.

As for Noel, the deal likely fell apart because the Thunder were much closer to contention than expected, and thus less likely to be a seller at the deadline. (Oklahoma City, of course, ended up pushing the Rockets to seven games in a tightly contested first-round playoff series.)

Now 26 years old, Noel averaged 7.4 points (68.4% FG), 4.9 rebounds, and 1.5 blocks in 18.5 minutes per game this season. Noel made the minimum salary and is set to become a free agent this offseason, so he very plausibly could again become a target by the Rockets — assuming they still want the option of larger lineups. As an athletic center, he could potentially provide both rim protection on defense and a lob threat on offense (like Capela did) as a pick-and-roll partner for James Harden.

Noel was the No. 6 overall pick in the 2013 NBA Draft by Philadelphia. During his career, he’s played four seasons with the Sixers; one season in Dallas; and the last two in Oklahoma City, where he played alongside current Rockets star Russell Westbrook in the 2018-19 campaign.

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Draft Rewind: Sixers trade Jrue Holiday for Nerlens Noel in 2013

We look back at the Philadelphia 76ers trading for Nerlens Noel in the 2013 NBA Draft.

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The Philadelphia 76ers entered the 2013 NBA Draft at a crossroads. They had made a huge trade for Andrew Bynum in the previous offseason giving up a lot of important pieces for him only to not play a single game.

The team would go on to a 34-48 record after coming to within a game of the Eastern Conference Finals the season before. The fact that Bynum did not play at all played a factor in the poor record and it earned the Sixers the 11th pick in the lottery.

However, they wanted more. On draft night, the team sent All-Star guard Jrue Holiday to the New Orleans Pelicans in exchange for the 6th pick in the draft. The pick turned into Nerlens Noel who was supposed to be the number 1 pick before a knee injury scared teams away and he slid to 6th.

He missed the entirety of his first season and he made his debut in the 2014-15 season. He averaged 9.9 points, 8.7 rebounds, 1.8 steals, and 1.9 blocks as he made an impact all over the floor. However, the team then drafted Joel Embiid in 2014 and Jahlil Okafor in 2015, and Noel was then traded to the Dallas Mavericks at the deadline in 2017 as he was the odd man out initially.

Holiday has since gone on to have a very nice career with the Pelicans. He has morphed into one of the top perimeter defenders in the NBA and he averaged 17.6 points, 6.8 assists, and 1.5 steals during his time down in New Orleans.

Noel played one more full season for Dallas before signing with the Oklahoma City Thunder in 2018 and he has since turned into a big defensive presence off their bench. He is a good shot blocker for them and that is what the Sixers were going to ask of him, but then Embiid blossomed in that 2016-17 season and there was not much reason to keep Noel around. [lawrence-related id=37878,37874,37858]

What Billy Donovan said about 11-man rotation after Thunder loss to Rockets

The Oklahoma City Thunder played 11 players in important moments of Game One. That’s likely not able to continue against the Houston Rockets.

Oklahoma City Thunder head coach Billy Donovan gave a little hint to his rotation plans going forward in the series against the Houston Rockets.

After the 123-108 loss in Game One of the series, the Thunder likely can’t play 11-men deep again.

Part of that this game was because Nerlens Noel got into early foul trouble. Part was because Donovan wanted to see Andre Roberson early.

From the way Donovan talked, it sounds like four bench guys will be favored: Dennis Schroder, Hamidou Diallo, Darius Bazley and Nerlens Noel.

Those four, along with the starting lineup that includes Terrance Ferguson in place of Lu Dort, would give Oklahoma City a nine-man rotation.

Where does that leave the other players who have gotten time during the season and bubble? Roberson, Mike Muscala, and Abdel Nader, who was available after a neck and elbow sensation held him out of the final bubble game, did not play Tuesday.

“We played Dennis off the bench, and we played Hami off the bench, we played Bazley off the bench and we played Nerlens off the bench,” Donovan said.

“The other two guys, Mike was in there because there was some foul issues with Nerlens, and other one was, I wanted to take a look at Andre, to see what it would be like guarding James Harden. He certainly has a history of playing against him and knows him very well. I think it was important sooner than later to find out what that would look like.”

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While Donovan said Roberson had “a good defensive stance,” he could not have been pleased about the foul Roberson committed on Harden on a 3-point shot. The star guard also drove by Roberson with apparent ease at one point. Roberson was a minus-6 in three minutes of play.

Muscala hit the only shot he took, a 3-pointer, but only had two rebounds in 13 minutes and might not move well enough defensively to defend the 5-out Rockets.

“One guy I didn’t play that I’ll continue to look at is Abdel Nader,” Donovan said.

Nader had two minutes of garbage time.

Going off what Donovan said, it sounds like the nine-man rotation moving forward will be point guards Chris Paul, Shai Gilgeous-Alexander and Schroder; wings Ferguson, Diallo and Bazley; power forward Danilo Gallinari, who, like Bazley, can get time as center; and Steven Adams and Noel.

Lu Dort has no timetable on his return, but he has not been ruled out of Game Two as Donovan says the guard continues to progress.

Donovan said he’ll watch film on Roberson; if Donovan only needed to see three minutes of action before removing him from Game One, though, there may be more focus on the other nine players moving forward.

It sounds like Muscala will only get time when foul trouble dictates.

Houston cut its bench down to just three guys to play an eight-man rotation. It worked masterfully, as Jeff Green had 22 points and was plus-28, Ben McLemore had 14 points and was plus-27 and Austin Rivers had four points but was plus-11.

The Oklahoma City bench will have to be that productive to counter the Rockets moving forward.

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Donovan: Thunder can’t ignore length, physicality of Rockets’ short lineups

The Houston Rockets have embraced small ball, but Thunder coach Billy Donovan is focused on their length and physicality.

Yes, the Houston Rockets play with no center.

No, they are not a tiny team, Oklahoma City Thunder head coach Billy Donovan emphasized.

Even though 6-foot-5 P.J. Tucker is the Rockets starting center and 6-foot-7 Robert Covington is power forward, the Rockets’ length and physicality gives Donovan pause.

“My first year in the NBA playing against Golden State, when they had Draymond (Green) at the 5, everybody talked about small, small, small,” Donvan said.

“They were not small. they were very, very physical, they had length, and those guys proved over a long period of time that they could play against bigger people.”

He feels the Rockets have created a rotation that does the same thing.

Therefore Donovan doesn’t think the Thunder have to downsize, though he said he’s “not opposed to that at all.”

Those bigs may be needed to add pressure to the tough Rockets players.

“Tucker has played against centers for a long period of time. Even when (Clint) Capela was there … He’s done this before. Their last game they played against the Sixers, and he guarded (Joel) Embiid.

Center Nerlens Noel said the games will be “intellectual.”

“Making the smart plays. Smart reads,” he said. “They’re going to be switching a lot, make sure we find the right angles to attack the rim. Making sure we’re getting the advantages coming downhill with the ball quick (and) fast.”

Personnel on the Oklahoma City roster can match up against Houston, from Darius Bazley as a small-ball 5 and Mike Muscala stretching the court at center.

Guards like Hamidou Diallo and Terrance Ferguson can guard around, too.

Noel said he’d need to make “small changes” with the Rockets’ switching and 3-pointers, but the small ball presents challenges for Houston alongside the advantages they’ve gained.

Donovan said the Thunder don’t have to be scared into replicating it.

“This is a team where it’s not necessarily about downsizing, in my opinion. Certainly we have the flexibility of doing that, but we’ve gotta be able to have a level of rim protection, lane protection, physicality, because they’re a very, very physical team,” Donovan said. “I’m not as wrapped up in terms of the size and the length as well as how well are we performing and how well are we doing.”

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Nerlens Noel will return to lineup for Thunder vs. Sixers on Sunday

The reserve big man will return to the lineup after missing the Thunder’s previous contest.

Those concerned about Nerlens Noel’s ankle can breathe a sigh of relief. Prior to tipping of their second exhibition contest on Sunday, head coach Billy Donovan notified reporters that Noel would be available for the contest.

After tweaking his ankle in practice, Noel spent a few days being limited to non-contact drills in practice. He would eventually be held out of the team’s first exhibition contest on Friday, wherein they defeated the Boston Celtics by a final score of 98-84.

Although the games do not count in the win-loss standings, the reason the NBA approved exhibition contests was to give players the opportunity to ramp up their activity levels. After a four-month layoff and not playing competitive games, going directly into highly-competitive playoff games would have been a recipe for disaster. There would have probably been a large number of injuries suffered.

So, if nothing else, the exhibition schedule gives players an opportunity to not only bust off rust, but improve their conditioning. So playing is important.

Fortunately, for Oklahoma City, Noel will be available when the contest begins.

Abdel Nader, however, won’t. Nader was diagnosed with a concussion on Saturday after hitting his head on the court during Friday’s exhibition game. He is considered day-to-day.

Nerlens Noel expected to play Sunday; Roberson full participant in practice after first game

Oklahoma City Thunder center Nerlens Noel, who has been limited and missed a game due to injury, is expected to return against the 76ers.

Oklahoma City Thunder center Nerlens Noel is expected to return against the Philadelphia 76ers on Sunday, head coach Billy Donovan said in a Zoom call with media Saturday.

Noel, who tweaked his ankle during a practice more than a week ago, has been limited for some practices.

He was initially expected to play in the scrimmage Friday against the Boston Celtics but was ruled out.

Donovan said “we fully anticipate” Noel playing in the Sunday scrimmage against Philadelphia.

“Nerlens went through everything in practice, we’re pretty optimistic right now that he’ll play,” Donovan said.

Noel has been an active piece of the Oklahoma City secondary units. In 18.4 minutes per game, he has averaged 7.7 points, 3.4 rebounds, 1.5 blocks and 1.0 steals.

He shoots at a 68.5% clip on 4.6 attempts per game, many of which are lobs from Chris Paul or Dennis Schroder.

Additionally, wing Andre Roberson does not appear to be fatigued from his first appearance in two and a half years.

After playing 11 minutes on Friday, Roberson was a full participant at practice Saturday.

“Andre did everything today in practice, we anticipate he’ll be available as well,” Donovan said.

If both play, the only missing player on the Thunder would be Abdel Nader.

Nader suffered a concussion late in the game against the Celtics. The team confirmed Saturday that he is going through concussion protocol and is expected to miss time.

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Thunder vs. Celtics: Nerlens Noel unavailable in first scrimmage

Oklahoma City Thunder center Nerlens Noel will be out against the Boston Celtics in the first scrimmage game inside the Orlando bubble.

Oklahoma City Thunder center Nerlens Noel will not play in the team’s first scrimmage, head coach Billy Donovan said Friday before the game.

Noel suffered what was described as a minor ankle injury during a practice in the bubble.

Donovan said earlier this week that the team has been “overly precautious” with the big man, and he practiced on Tuesday.

On Wednesday, it sounded like Noel would be able to see game minutes, as Donovan said the team anticipated the whole roster being available.

On Friday afternoon, he had shifted his tune.

“He practiced Wednesday, but just getting some feedback of where he’s at, thought it would be best just to give him another day to rest, having yesterday off,” Donovan said.

While Noel is missing the game, the injury still doesn’t sound serious a week before the real games begin. Donovan expects the center to be available Sunday for the scrimmage against the Philadelphia 76ers.

“He should be ready to go against Philly and be back at practice tomorrow,” Donovan said. “We thought it would be wise just to give him an extra day.”

Noel will be the only Thunder player out.

Wing Andre Roberson is set to return after missing the last two and a half years due to injury.

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Shai Gilgeous-Alexander has an ‘obsession’ with pursuit of greatness

Slowly but surely, the 22-year-old has become one of the most talked about players on the Thunder roster.

Years from now, when we look back on it, trading Paul George and Russell Westbrook might end up being a fantastic deal for the Oklahoma City Thunder.

Obviously, walking away from the franchise’s cornerstone in Westbrook was a difficult thing to do emotionally, but the treasure trove of draft picks the team received in exchange for its superstars softened the blow.

So did the arrival of Shai Gilgeous-Alexander.

Over the course of the season, the young Canadian has slowly but surely become one of the more talked about members of Billy Donovan’s team, and on Tuesday, his teammate and fellow former Kentucky Wildcat Nerlens Noel had an important message for those who salivate at Gilgeous-Alexander’s potential…

The best is yet to come.

“He’s done a great job all season, but what I really noticed from him, from post-Covid, is just his awareness of the game now,” Noel said to reporters.

“Everything’s slowed down and it’s something that I’ve really noticed. Just in the pick-and-roll, he’s looking for his teammates, trying to engage the big man, and understand really how to play the game.”

The fact that Gilgeous-Alexander has had the opportunity to study under Chris Paul has only helped his development. The two have obviously developed a close relationship both on and off the court.

“Maybe that’s a lot of credit to [Chris Paul],” Nerlens said about SGA’s development, “That’s a lot of credit to Shai for being a student of the game, but I think this next stretch of the playoffs is going to be interesting to watch him play and understand his maturity on how he’s grown over this past year.”

The confident Canadian made it known that he brought a three-month supply of clothes with him to Orlando, meaning he’s planning on being there through the NBA Finals.

He was asked about his confidence and also what he thinks it is about him that makes others believe in his potential.

“I think first and foremost, my work ethic. I want to be good, I want to be great,” Gilgeous-Alexander said.

“But then there’s the time you put into it and not everyone’s willing to do that, but that’s something I’m willing to do, so I think that’s first. And then I think it’s just my obsession with the game.”

In short order, he’ll have the opportunity to show he’s ready to take both his game and his team to the next level.

The Thunder begin exhibition play in Orlando on July 24 before beginning their eight seeding games on Aug. 1.

Obviously, all eyes will be on the young sophomore.