Nerlens Noel (born April 10, 1994) is an American professional

basketball Basketball is a team sport in which two teams, most commonly of five players each, opposing one another on a rectangular Basketball court, court, compete with the primary objective of #Shooting, shooting a basketball (ball), basketball (appr ...

player for the

Detroit Pistons The Detroit Pistons are an American professional basketball team based in Detroit. The Pistons compete in the National Basketball Association (NBA) as a member of the league's Eastern Conference Central Division and play their home games at ...

of the

National Basketball Association The National Basketball Association (NBA) is a professional basketball league in North America. The league is composed of 30 teams (29 in the United States and 1 in Canada) and is one of the major professional sports leagues in the United ...

(NBA). His collegiate basketball career ended in his first season with a tear of his

anterior cruciate ligament The anterior cruciate ligament (ACL) is one of a pair of cruciate ligaments (the other being the posterior cruciate ligament) in the human knee. The two ligaments are also called "cruciform" ligaments, as they are arranged in a crossed formation. ...

(ACL) at the

University of Kentucky The University of Kentucky (UK, UKY, or U of K) is a public land-grant research university in Lexington, Kentucky. Founded in 1865 by John Bryan Bowman as the Agricultural and Mechanical College of Kentucky, the university is one of the state' ...

. Noel was drafted with the sixth overall pick in the 2013 NBA draft by the

New Orleans Pelicans The New Orleans Pelicans are an American professional basketball team based in New Orleans. The Pelicans compete in the National Basketball Association (NBA) as a member of the league's Western Conference Southwest Division and play their hom ...

. His rights were later traded to the

Philadelphia 76ers The Philadelphia 76ers, colloquially known as the Sixers, are an American professional basketball team based in the Philadelphia metropolitan area. The 76ers compete in the National Basketball Association (NBA) as a member of the league's Eas ...

. He plays

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and power forward, and was one of the top high school basketball players in the class of 2012.

High school career

20110110 Nerlens Noel (profile) at Hoop Hall Classic

Born outside

Boston Boston (), officially the City of Boston, is the state capital and most populous city of the Commonwealth of Massachusetts, as well as the cultural and financial center of the New England region of the United States. It is the 24th- m ...

Malden, Massachusetts Malden is a city in Middlesex County, Massachusetts, United States. At the time of the 2020 U.S. Census, the population was 66,263 people. History Malden, a hilly woodland area north of the Mystic River, was settled by Puritans in 1640 on ...

Haiti Haiti (; ht, Ayiti ; French: ), officially the Republic of Haiti (); ) and formerly known as Hayti, is a country located on the island of Hispaniola in the Greater Antilles archipelago of the Caribbean Sea, east of Cuba and Jamaica, an ...

an immigrant parents, Noel spent his first two years of high school at Everett High School. After his sophomore year, he transferred to

Tilton School Tilton School is an independent, coeducational, college-preparatory school in Tilton, New Hampshire, serving students from 9th to 12th grade and postgraduate students. Founded in 1845, Tilton's student body in the 2021-22 academic year consisted ...

in Tilton, New Hampshire. Noel was originally a part of the class of 2013, but reclassified to the 2012 college recruiting class. Noel averaged 12.6 points, 7.2 rebounds and 3.9 blocks per game as a senior. He was rated as the #1 player in the class of 2012 by ESPN and Scout.com, and the #2 player by SLAM. Noel was selected to play in the 2012

Nike Hoop Summit The Nike Hoop Summit is an international men's basketball all-star game sponsored by Nike, held once a year since 1995, except from 2001–2003, which features the USA Basketball Men's Junior Select Team against a World Select Team of internationa ...

and the 2012

Jordan Brand Classic The Jordan Brand Classic is a high school All-Star basketball game played annually in April. The game's rosters feature the best and most highly recruited high school boys in the senior class including alumns like Chris Paul, Carmelo Anthony, Bl ...

. In addition to his high school career, Noel also played AAU basketball on the same team as future Sixers teammate

Michael Carter-Williams Michael Carter-Williams (born October 10, 1991) is an American professional basketball player. He was drafted in the first round with the 11th overall pick in the 2013 NBA draft by the Philadelphia 76ers, after playing college basketball for the ...

. Shortly before his high school graduation, an article in ''

The New York Times ''The New York Times'' (''the Times'', ''NYT'', or the Gray Lady) is a daily newspaper based in New York City with a worldwide readership reported in 2020 to comprise a declining 840,000 paid print subscribers, and a growing 6 million paid ...

'' described Noel as being hailed as one of the best shot blockers of his generation, although he was also described as having unrefined offensive skills.

College career

After deliberating among several elite college basketball programs, Noel decided in April 2012 that he would be going to the

to play

NCAA Division I NCAA Division I (D-I) is the highest level of intercollegiate athletics sanctioned by the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) in the United States, which accepts players globally. D-I schools include the major collegiate athleti ...

basketball. He made his verbal commitment by revealing the UK logo shaved in the back of his head on national television. Since Noel was well known for his elite shot blocking abilities, fans and the media had high expectations for him to fill the shoes of

Anthony Davis Anthony Marshon Davis Jr. (born March 11, 1993) is an American professional basketball player for the Los Angeles Lakers of the National Basketball Association (NBA). He plays the power forward and center positions. Davis is an eight-time N ...

, who had just led the

Kentucky Wildcats The Kentucky Wildcats are the men's and women's intercollegiate athletic squads of the University of Kentucky (UK), a founding member of the Southeastern Conference. The Kentucky Wildcats is the student body of the University of Kentucky. 30,473 ...

to a national championship in the previous season, was the 2011–2012 National Player of the Year in the NCAA, and set a Kentucky and NCAA freshman single-season block record with 186. In his third game on November 16, 2012, he accumulated 15 points, 7 rebounds, 4 assists, 1 block, and 4 steals against

Lafayette Lafayette or La Fayette may refer to: People * Lafayette (name), a list of people with the surname Lafayette or La Fayette or the given name Lafayette * House of La Fayette, a French noble family ** Gilbert du Motier, Marquis de Lafayette (1757� ...

. On January 12, 2013, although Kentucky lost the game against

Texas A&M Texas A&M University (Texas A&M, A&M, or TAMU) is a public university, public, Land-grant university, land-grant, research university in College Station, Texas. It was founded in 1876 and became the flagship institution of the Texas A&M Unive ...

, Noel recorded 15 points, 11 rebounds, 7 blocks, 6 assists, and 4 steals. On January 29, 2013, Noel set the UK single-game record with 12 blocks in an 87–74 team victory over #16 Ole Miss. Five of the blocks happened while Noel had four personal fouls, and two of them were denials on slam dunk attempts. The UK school record was previously nine blocks, set by Sam Bowie in 1981 and was then tied by Andre Riddick in 1993. Although he recorded only two points, Ole Miss coach Andy Kennedy said in the post-game press conference that " oelwas the difference in the game" and that he is "an incredible defensive presence." Ole Miss senior forward Murphy Holloway added that he believes Nerlens Noel is the "best shot blocker

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played against", including Anthony Davis. On February 12, 2013, in a game against the

Florida Gators The Florida Gators are the intercollegiate athletic teams that represent the University of Florida, located in Gainesville. The University of Florida, its athletic program, its alumni and its sports fans are often collectively referred to as ...

, Noel tore the ACL in his left knee after blocking a Florida lay-up, forcing him to sit out the remainder of the season. Before his injury, it was projected that he would be the 1st overall pick in the 2013 NBA draft. Despite his injury, Noel decided to declare for the 2013 draft on April 15, 2013. Noel was honored with many awards, including SEC Freshman of the Year, SEC Defensive Player of the Year, SEC First Team, SEC All Freshman Team, and SEC Community Service Team. In addition to earning All-SEC first team honors by the league's coaches, Noel earned first-team honors from the Associated Press, continuing a four-year streak of UK players earning first-team AP honors. The Wildcats' center was joined by UNLV Runnin' Rebels' Anthony Bennett,

UCLA Bruins The UCLA Bruins are the athletic teams that represent the University of California, Los Angeles. The Bruin men's and women's teams participate in NCAA Division I as part of the Pac-12 Conference and the Mountain Pacific Sports Federation (MPSF) ...

Shabazz Muhammad Shabazz Nagee Muhammad (born November 13, 1992) is an American professional basketball player for Beirut Club of the Lebanese Basketball League (LBL). He played one season of college basketball for the UCLA Bruins before being selected with the 1 ...

Oklahoma State Cowboys The Oklahoma State Cowboys and Cowgirls are the intercollegiate athletic teams that represent Oklahoma State University, located in Stillwater. The program's mascot is a cowboy named Pistol Pete. Oklahoma State participates at the National Co ...

Marcus Smart Marcus Osmond Smart (born March 6, 1994) is an American professional basketball player for the Boston Celtics of the National Basketball Association (NBA). He played college basketball for the Oklahoma State Cowboys. Smart was drafted with the ...

and

Kansas Jayhawks The Kansas Jayhawks, commonly referred to as simply KU or Kansas, are the athletic teams that represent the University of Kansas. KU is one of three schools in the state of Kansas that participate in NCAA Division I. The Jayhawks are also a mem ...

's Ben McLemore on the Freshman All-America team. He was the fifth Kentucky player under coach

John Calipari John Vincent Calipari (born February 10, 1959) is an American basketball coach. Since 2009, he has been the head coach of the University of Kentucky men's team, with whom he won the NCAA Championship in 2012. He has been named Naismith College C ...

to earn the honor from the USBWA, joining

John Wall Johnathan Hildred Wall Jr. (born September 6, 1990) is an American professional basketball player for the Los Angeles Clippers of the National Basketball Association (NBA). A Raleigh, North Carolina native, Wall was chosen with the first overa ...

DeMarcus Cousins DeMarcus Amir Cousins (born August 13, 1990) is an American professional basketball player who last played for the Denver Nuggets of the National Basketball Association (NBA). Nicknamed "Boogie", he played college basketball for the Kentucky Wil ...

, and

Michael Kidd-Gilchrist Michael Anthony Edward Kidd-Gilchrist ( Gilchrist; born September 26, 1993) is an American professional basketball player who last played for the Dallas Mavericks of the National Basketball Association (NBA). Kidd-Gilchrist was drafted second ove ...

Professional career

Philadelphia 76ers (2013–2017)

Noel entered the 2013 NBA draft after playing one season at the University of Kentucky and was projected to be one of the top picks, with many considering Noel the favorite to be picked first in the draft. He was invited to sit in the "green room", a room of the projected top 10 to 15 collegiate basketball players during the draft and ended up being selected with the sixth overall pick by the

. There were concerns around the league about his torn left ACL, which may have caused him to slide down the draft. Later that night, Noel's draft rights were traded along with a 2014 first round pick to the

in exchange for guard Jrue Holiday and the draft rights to Pierre Jackson. On July 12, 2013, the trade sending Noel to the 76ers was finalized. On September 24, 2013, he signed with the 76ers. Although the 76ers' original plan was to have Noel play during the 2013–14 season, Noel missed the entire season as he recovered from knee surgery. Nerlens Noel with the Philadelphia 76ers in 2015

Nerlens Noel with the Philadelphia 76ers in 2015

Noel joined the Philadelphia 76ers for the

2014 NBA Summer League The 2014 NBA Summer League consists of two pro basketball leagues organized by the NBA and the Orlando Magic just after the 2014 NBA Draft. Ten teams took part in the week-long summer league at the Amway Center in Orlando, Florida, from July 5 to ...

. On October 29, 2014, Noel made his long-awaited NBA debut in the 76ers' 103–91 loss to the Indiana Pacers. In just under 35 minutes of action as a starter, he recorded 6 points, along with 10 rebounds and 3 blocks. Two days later, the 76ers exercised their third-year team option on Noel's rookie scale contract, extending the contract through the 2015–16 season. On January 30, he recorded 14 points, 6 rebounds, 4 steals, and a then-career-high 6 blocks in a 103–94 win over the Minnesota Timberwolves. Noel participated in the 2015

Rising Stars Challenge The Rising Stars Challenge is a basketball exhibition game held by the National Basketball Association (NBA) on the Friday before the annual All-Star Game as part of the All-Star Weekend. The current format to be used in 2022 includes first- ...

as part of the Team USA roster. On February 20, Noel recorded 12 points, 9 rebounds, 4 steals, and a career-high 9 blocks in a loss to the Indiana Pacers. A week later against Washington, Noel became just the third 76ers' rookie to record 100 blocks in a season. On October 30, 2015, the 76ers exercised their fourth-year team option on Noel's rookie scale contract, extending the contract through the 2016–17 season. On December 30, he recorded a season-high 20 points and 9 rebounds in a 110–105 win over the Sacramento Kings. On February 11, he was ruled out of the 2016

due to tendinitis in his right knee. On October 22, 2016, Noel was ruled out for three to five weeks due to an inflamed plica above his left knee that required surgery. After spending time with the

Delaware 87ers Delaware ( ) is a state in the Mid-Atlantic region of the United States, bordering Maryland to its south and west; Pennsylvania to its north; and New Jersey and the Atlantic Ocean to its east. The state takes its name from the adjacent De ...

of the

NBA Development League The NBA G League, or simply the G League, is the National Basketball Association's (NBA) official List of developmental and minor sports leagues, minor league basketball organization. The league was known as the National Basketball Development ...

on injury rehab assignments in late November and early December, Noel made his season debut for the 76ers on December 11 against the

, having missed the first 23 games. He scored eight points in 10 minutes off the bench before leaving the game in the second quarter with a left ankle sprain. On January 24, 2017, while making his first start of the season in place of the injured

Joel Embiid Joel Hans Embiid ( ; born 16 March 1994) is a Cameroonian professional basketball player for the Philadelphia 76ers of the National Basketball Association (NBA), who also holds French and American citizenship. After one year of college basketb ...

, Noel scored a season-high 19 points, along with three blocks, in a 121–110 win over the

Los Angeles Clippers The Los Angeles Clippers are an American professional basketball team based in Los Angeles. The Clippers compete in the National Basketball Association (NBA) as a member of the Pacific Division in the league's Western Conference. The Clippe ...

Dallas Mavericks (2017–2018)

On February 23, 2017, Noel was traded to the

Dallas Mavericks The Dallas Mavericks (often referred to as the Mavs) are an American professional basketball team based in Dallas. The Mavericks compete in the National Basketball Association (NBA) as a member of the Western Conference Southwest Division. T ...

in exchange for Justin Anderson,

Andrew Bogut Andrew Michael Bogut (born 28 November 1984) is an Australian former basketball player who spent the majority of his professional career playing in the National Basketball Association (NBA). The tall center was selected by the Milwaukee Buck ...

and a 2017 protected first-round pick. He made his debut for the Mavericks two days later, recording nine points and 10 rebounds off the bench in a 96–83 win over the

. On March 3, 2017, in his first start for the Mavericks, Noel tied a career high with 17 rebounds while scoring 15 points in a 104–100 win over the

Memphis Grizzlies The Memphis Grizzlies (referred to locally as the Grizz) are an American professional basketball team based in Memphis, Tennessee. The Grizzlies compete in the National Basketball Association (NBA) as a member of the league's Western Conference ...

. On June 23, 2017, the Mavericks tendered a $4.1 million qualifying offer to make Noel a restricted free agent. On August 26, 2017, he accepted the one-year, $4.1 million qualifying offer, officially re-signing with the Mavericks two days later. In the Mavericks' season opener on October 18, 2017, Noel had 16 points, his most since joining Dallas, and 11 rebounds in a 117–111 loss to the

Atlanta Hawks The Atlanta Hawks are an American professional basketball team based in Atlanta. The Hawks compete in the National Basketball Association (NBA) as a member of the league's Eastern Conference (NBA), Eastern Conference Southeast Division (NBA), Sou ...

. On December 8, 2017, he underwent surgery to repair a torn ligament in his left thumb. He subsequently missed 42 games, returning to action on February 28, 2018 against the

Oklahoma City Thunder The Oklahoma City Thunder are an American professional basketball team based in Oklahoma City. The Thunder compete in the National Basketball Association (NBA) as a member of the league's Western Conference Northwest Division. The team plays ...

, recording four points, three rebounds and four fouls in 16 minutes in a 111–110 overtime loss. On March 6, 2018, he had a season-high 14 rebounds in a 118–107 win over the

Denver Nuggets The Denver Nuggets are an American professional basketball team based in Denver. The Nuggets compete in the National Basketball Association (NBA) as a member of the league's Western Conference Northwest Division. The team was founded as the D ...

. On April 3, 2018, he was suspended without pay for five games for violating the terms of the NBA/NBPA Anti-Drug Program.

Oklahoma City Thunder (2018–2020)

On July 6, 2018, Noel signed a two-year contract with the

. On October 28, 2018, he had 20 points and 15 rebounds in a 117–110 win over the

Phoenix Suns The Phoenix Suns are an American professional basketball team based in Phoenix, Arizona. They compete in the National Basketball Association (NBA), as a member of the league's Western Conference Pacific Division. The Suns are the only team in t ...

. On December 31, he scored 15 points in 15 minutes in a 122–102 win over the

. On January 8 against the

Minnesota Timberwolves The Minnesota Timberwolves are an American professional basketball team based in Minneapolis. The Timberwolves compete in the National Basketball Association (NBA) as a member of the league's Western Conference Northwest Division. Founded in 19 ...

, Noel was taken off the court on a stretcher in the third quarter after taking an elbow in the face and hitting the floor hard. Due to concussion, he missed the next three games.

New York Knicks (2020–2022)

On November 25, 2020, Noel signed a one-year contract with the

New York Knicks The New York Knickerbockers, shortened and more commonly referred to as the New York Knicks, are an American professional basketball team based in the New York City borough of Manhattan. The Knicks compete in the National Basketball Associa ...

. On August 11, 2021, the Knicks re-signed Noel to a three-year, $32 million deal.

Detroit Pistons (2022–present)

On July 11, 2022, Noel was traded, alongside Alec Burks, to the

in exchange for the draft rights to Nikola Radičević and a 2025 protected second-round pick.

Career statistics

NBA

Regular season

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, 25 , , 11 , , 22.5 , , .533 , , .000 , , .700 , , 5.6 , , .9 , , 1.2 , , 1.2 , , 3.4 , - class="sortbottom" , style="text-align:center;" colspan="2", Career , 450 , , 219 , , 22.4 , , .549 , , .154 , , .655 , , 6.2 , , 1.1 , , 1.3 , , 1.5 , , 7.3

Playoffs

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College statistics

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Kentucky Kentucky ( , ), officially the Commonwealth of Kentucky, is a state in the Southeastern region of the United States and one of the states of the Upper South. It borders Illinois, Indiana, and Ohio to the north; West Virginia and Virgin ...

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Personal life

Noel's parents migrated from

in 1990. He has two older brothers and one younger sister; both of Noel's older brothers played for Division I college football programs. His oldest brother, Jim, played for Boston College, while Rodman played for North Carolina State.

References

External links

Kentucky Wildcats bio
* {{DEFAULTSORT:Noel, Nerlens 1994 births Living people 21st-century African-American sportspeople African-American basketball players American men's basketball players American sportspeople of Haitian descent Basketball players from Massachusetts Centers (basketball) Dallas Mavericks players Detroit Pistons players Kentucky Wildcats men's basketball players New Orleans Pelicans draft picks New York Knicks players Oklahoma City Thunder players Parade High School All-Americans (boys' basketball) Philadelphia 76ers players Power forwards (basketball) Sportspeople from Everett, Massachusetts Sportspeople from Malden, Massachusetts