Would you draft-day trade our pick (#7-11) for Nerlens Noel?

[PickNRoll]

Fill in the blank.  Hinkie would not trade Nerlens Noel for [NBA starting center].

Zeller
Pachulia
Plumlee?
Sacre
Jason Smith

Given all his "potential", there are 4-5 centers with lower value, mostly on tanking teams.

[gpap]

http://nyloncalculus.com/stats/rim-protection/

This link attempts to calculate rim protection. It does this by calculating pts saved pergame. I dont know how reliable it is but a top 3 of Gobert, Hibbert, Bogut sounds about right. Anyway, it lists Noel behind Tyler Zeller.

He is a rookie, and he is listed right up there with some fantastic defensive centers, but lets not act like hes a dominant defender yet and there is some fear he will never even be decent on O.

I like him. I see him having a similar career to Tyson Chandler. But I see  that as a ceiling. I like some other posters would take Smart and Brooklyn 2016 off the table and then pretty much tell philly to take their pick of picks and players. I would offer our 2015, then the option between Sully, KO, or any other picks not belonging to the Nets.

Bingo.  I watch some sixers games.  He's not dominant in any way.  Putrid on offense. Occasionally a factor on defense due to his length.  More often he gets overpowered, bites on pump fakes, gets stuck on screens, goaltends, surrenders offensive boards or gets lost.  There's a reason they've won 12 games.

double bingo

Well that solves it, folks... Tyler Zeller is the 9th best rim protector in basketball.  No need to trade for a dominant defensive rookie prospect like Nerlens Noel.

Zeller is ahead of Duncan, Drummond, Dwight Howard, Tyson Chandler, Demarcus Cousins, DeAndre Jordan, Omer Asik, Marc Gasol, Al Horford, etc. 

Who woulda thunk that all this time we lamented our lack of interior defense, we had a top 9 defensive center already starting?  Shucks.  Tyler Zeller - DPOY

OK champ, you basically say that he was supposed to be a stud rim protector out of college and hes averaging great steal/blocks numbers and so hes on the fast track to a elite career.

He has 0 offensive game. He was part of a draft with less star potential than any I can remember but he dropped to 6 because guess what? He doesnt have star potential!!!! He had an ACL tear and no offensive game. Since then he has played half a season and still has no offensive game. So why is he all of a sudden worth top 10 picks in back to back drafts each of which are stronger than the one he was selected in?

Yes the metric is faulty but so is points, rebounds, blocks, steals and any other stat especially for a dude on the sixers. I like most posters dont watch much Noel, but he has yet to impress me.

Again, Id give up a first, but the dude is not what you make him out to be. I understand your point of view but I dont get why you feel like everyone or any metric which disagrees with you is an idiot. How about this:

Hibbert
Gasol
Drummond
Bogut
Gobert
Whiteside(eh)
Lopez
Cousins
Jordan
Ibaka
Duncan
Asik
Valanciunas
Lopez

Thats 14 very good- great defensive "rim protectors" and nearly all have better offensive games than Noel. This is why I would rather not sell the farm for Nerlen Noel.

Sorry for the 'tude but Im fired up today (IDK why)

He's a rookie coming off major surgery and already a better prospect than anyone on this franchise.  How many of those players averaged 2 blocks and 2 steals as 20 year old rookies coming off major surgery?

If you're comparing 20 year old post-injury Noel to the above names, perhaps you should compare him to those players at the same point in their lives...

How about 20 year old Hibbert?  College.  21 year old Hibbert?  College.  22 year old healthy Hibbert?  7 points, 3.5 rebounds and a block.

20 year old Deandre Jordan averaged 4.3 points, 4.5 rebounds, 1 block

Asik didn't enter the league until he was 24 years old and he averaged 2.8 points, 3.7 rebounds, 0 steals and 0.7 blocks...

Should we play this same game with 25 year old Whiteside?

It's called "development", folks.

But at some point, I'd like to see us drop the "development" and acquire guys that can play RIGHT NOW.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rMV-fenGP1g

[mahcus smaht]

http://nyloncalculus.com/stats/rim-protection/

This link attempts to calculate rim protection. It does this by calculating pts saved pergame. I dont know how reliable it is but a top 3 of Gobert, Hibbert, Bogut sounds about right. Anyway, it lists Noel behind Tyler Zeller.

He is a rookie, and he is listed right up there with some fantastic defensive centers, but lets not act like hes a dominant defender yet and there is some fear he will never even be decent on O.

I like him. I see him having a similar career to Tyson Chandler. But I see  that as a ceiling. I like some other posters would take Smart and Brooklyn 2016 off the table and then pretty much tell philly to take their pick of picks and players. I would offer our 2015, then the option between Sully, KO, or any other picks not belonging to the Nets.

Bingo.  I watch some sixers games.  He's not dominant in any way.  Putrid on offense. Occasionally a factor on defense due to his length.  More often he gets overpowered, bites on pump fakes, gets stuck on screens, goaltends, surrenders offensive boards or gets lost.  There's a reason they've won 12 games.

double bingo

Well that solves it, folks... Tyler Zeller is the 9th best rim protector in basketball.  No need to trade for a dominant defensive rookie prospect like Nerlens Noel.

Zeller is ahead of Duncan, Drummond, Dwight Howard, Tyson Chandler, Demarcus Cousins, DeAndre Jordan, Omer Asik, Marc Gasol, Al Horford, etc. 

Who woulda thunk that all this time we lamented our lack of interior defense, we had a top 9 defensive center already starting?  Shucks.  Tyler Zeller - DPOY

OK champ, you basically say that he was supposed to be a stud rim protector out of college and hes averaging great steal/blocks numbers and so hes on the fast track to a elite career.

He has 0 offensive game. He was part of a draft with less star potential than any I can remember but he dropped to 6 because guess what? He doesnt have star potential!!!! He had an ACL tear and no offensive game. Since then he has played half a season and still has no offensive game. So why is he all of a sudden worth top 10 picks in back to back drafts each of which are stronger than the one he was selected in?

Yes the metric is faulty but so is points, rebounds, blocks, steals and any other stat especially for a dude on the sixers. I like most posters dont watch much Noel, but he has yet to impress me.

Again, Id give up a first, but the dude is not what you make him out to be. I understand your point of view but I dont get why you feel like everyone or any metric which disagrees with you is an idiot. How about this:

Hibbert
Gasol
Drummond
Bogut
Gobert
Whiteside(eh)
Lopez
Cousins
Jordan
Ibaka
Duncan
Asik
Valanciunas
Lopez

Thats 14 very good- great defensive "rim protectors" and nearly all have better offensive games than Noel. This is why I would rather not sell the farm for Nerlen Noel.

Sorry for the 'tude but Im fired up today (IDK why)

He's a rookie coming off major surgery and already a better prospect than anyone on this franchise.  How many of those players averaged 2 blocks and 2 steals as 20 year old rookies coming off major surgery?

If you're comparing 20 year old post-injury Noel to the above names, perhaps you should compare him to those players at the same point in their lives...

How about 20 year old Hibbert?  College.  21 year old Hibbert?  College.  22 year old healthy Hibbert?  7 points, 3.5 rebounds and a block.

20 year old Deandre Jordan averaged 4.3 points, 4.5 rebounds, 1 block

Asik didn't enter the league until he was 24 years old and he averaged 2.8 points, 3.7 rebounds, 0 steals and 0.7 blocks...

Should we play this same game with 25 year old Whiteside?

It's called "development", folks.

Fair points.

A 20 yr old Deandre Jordan did not get the minutes Noel is getting probably because he was a 2nd round pick and Noel was top 10 and had also been learning the system and with NBA coaches for a year already.

Their per 48 splits read as follows:

Noel: 13.2 pts, 11.3 boards, 2.9 blocks 45% shooting
Jordan: 14.2 pts 14.8 boards 3.7 blocks 63% shooting
Rookie Hibbert: 23.6, 11.5, 3.6 47% shooting

I think Noel could well become a better defensive player than almost all the guys I listed. The point of the list was to illustrate the fact that the mythic "rim-protector" is not something that comes around once a decade there are 10+ in the NBA today.

Now, in another post which I cant find rn you said you wish we had done the Holliday for Noel and 2014 # 10 with rondo instead of Holliday.

I 100% agree. We would have sucked more last year but not very much. Either way it would have lost us the 1 extra game necessary to get us to pick 5. Then we would have Noel, our rim protector defensive stud and could still grab smart and then someone else with #10 or maybe combine it and 17 etc etc.

I remember as he dropped out of the top 3 hoping and hoping Danny would find a way to get him. He would be a great peace to have. In that, we agree.

I am very interested to see what philly does with Noel as I see Embiid as the better all around prospect. Will they keep both?

One thing is for sure, if Noel hits the block Danny will be first in line with a nice package of picks to sell.

[Mass_1081]

The thing is, if Noel is available it means the 76ers drafted a big man and are too crowded. That means we would not have to grossly over pay for him. Bradley and our pick? Sully and our pick? Are we getting a Greek god? I think we could get Noel for a lot less in that situation.

Given what rim protectors are going for now days I think that is extremely unrealistic. That's a severe underpay.

 Did you go through the trouble of signing up to the Celticsblog just to defend the Sixers talk? It's obvious your a Sixer fan, and not a Celtics fan, why sign up to the board then?

[Mass_1081]

  If the C's want a rim protector I'd hope they could find one with a little upside to their offensive game. Why not just draft Cauley-Stein with the seventh pick then? He's more athletic and would run the floor better. I wouldn't trade the pick for Noel, and I don't think the Sixers would either. Sully and the pick is a overpay.Take a chance on Upshaw if you want a center that can only rebound and block shots.

[MBunge]

http://nyloncalculus.com/stats/rim-protection/

This link attempts to calculate rim protection. It does this by calculating pts saved pergame. I dont know how reliable it is but a top 3 of Gobert, Hibbert, Bogut sounds about right. Anyway, it lists Noel behind Tyler Zeller.

He is a rookie, and he is listed right up there with some fantastic defensive centers, but lets not act like hes a dominant defender yet and there is some fear he will never even be decent on O.

I like him. I see him having a similar career to Tyson Chandler. But I see  that as a ceiling. I like some other posters would take Smart and Brooklyn 2016 off the table and then pretty much tell philly to take their pick of picks and players. I would offer our 2015, then the option between Sully, KO, or any other picks not belonging to the Nets.

Bingo.  I watch some sixers games.  He's not dominant in any way.  Putrid on offense. Occasionally a factor on defense due to his length.  More often he gets overpowered, bites on pump fakes, gets stuck on screens, goaltends, surrenders offensive boards or gets lost.  There's a reason they've won 12 games.

double bingo

Well that solves it, folks... Tyler Zeller is the 9th best rim protector in basketball.  No need to trade for a dominant defensive rookie prospect like Nerlens Noel.

Zeller is ahead of Duncan, Drummond, Dwight Howard, Tyson Chandler, Demarcus Cousins, DeAndre Jordan, Omer Asik, Marc Gasol, Al Horford, etc. 

Who woulda thunk that all this time we lamented our lack of interior defense, we had a top 9 defensive center already starting?  Shucks.  Tyler Zeller - DPOY

Yes, we all love stats when they tell us what we want to believe, like Nerlans being this awesome prospect.  And we all hate stats when they tell us something we don't want to believe, like Nerlans not being such hot stuff.

Mike

[PickNRoll]

The thing is, if Noel is available it means the 76ers drafted a big man and are too crowded. That means we would not have to grossly over pay for him. Bradley and our pick? Sully and our pick? Are we getting a Greek god? I think we could get Noel for a lot less in that situation.

Given what rim protectors are going for now days I think that is extremely unrealistic. That's a severe underpay.

 Did you go through the trouble of signing up to the Celticsblog just to defend the Sixers talk? It's obvious your a Sixer fan, and not a Celtics fan, why sign up to the board then?

Underpay?!  I wouldn't trade Bradley for anybody on the 76ers roster!  Noel and their first round pick maybe.

[LarBrd33]

FYI his last 5 games:

12.6 points, 6.6 rebounds, 2.4 assists, 3.6 blocks, 2 steals, 53% shooting, 71% shooting from the line, 33mpg

This is gonna sound cray-cray, but I think the 20 year old highly-touted rookie coming off major surgery is actually... improving. 

Let's see how he improves when the rest of his athleticism comes back... and he's surrounded by actual nba players... and he learns how to play basketball. 

[Who]

His defensive quickness in help & recovery is exceptional. A joy to watch. Exactly what I love to see in a defensive center. I think think defensive centers like this are much more valuable than statuesque defenders like Roy Hibbert. Excellent hands too. Always in the passing lanes making life difficult for opposition. In a few years time, after adding some muscle and gaining some experience, Noel will be a perennial DPOY candidate.

I think playing on a such a bad team is good for Noel's offensive development. He gets to try things - jump-shots, post ups - that he wouldn't get on a better team. The coaching staff is doing a good job of getting involved as a passer and trying to develop that side of his game as well. I like seeing that. I do not understand why so many coaches fail to develop their centers as passers (very important weapon for Noel if he fails to develop scoring skills).

Impressed with his improvement since early on in season. Clearly putting in the work.

[RAAAAAAAANDY]

http://nyloncalculus.com/stats/rim-protection/

This link attempts to calculate rim protection. It does this by calculating pts saved pergame. I dont know how reliable it is but a top 3 of Gobert, Hibbert, Bogut sounds about right. Anyway, it lists Noel behind Tyler Zeller.

He is a rookie, and he is listed right up there with some fantastic defensive centers, but lets not act like hes a dominant defender yet and there is some fear he will never even be decent on O.

I like him. I see him having a similar career to Tyson Chandler. But I see  that as a ceiling. I like some other posters would take Smart and Brooklyn 2016 off the table and then pretty much tell philly to take their pick of picks and players. I would offer our 2015, then the option between Sully, KO, or any other picks not belonging to the Nets.

Bingo.  I watch some sixers games.  He's not dominant in any way.  Putrid on offense. Occasionally a factor on defense due to his length.  More often he gets overpowered, bites on pump fakes, gets stuck on screens, goaltends, surrenders offensive boards or gets lost.  There's a reason they've won 12 games.

double bingo

Well that solves it, folks... Tyler Zeller is the 9th best rim protector in basketball.  No need to trade for a dominant defensive rookie prospect like Nerlens Noel.

Zeller is ahead of Duncan, Drummond, Dwight Howard, Tyson Chandler, Demarcus Cousins, DeAndre Jordan, Omer Asik, Marc Gasol, Al Horford, etc. 

Who woulda thunk that all this time we lamented our lack of interior defense, we had a top 9 defensive center already starting?  Shucks.  Tyler Zeller - DPOY

OK champ, you basically say that he was supposed to be a stud rim protector out of college and hes averaging great steal/blocks numbers and so hes on the fast track to a elite career.

He has 0 offensive game. He was part of a draft with less star potential than any I can remember but he dropped to 6 because guess what? He doesnt have star potential!!!! He had an ACL tear and no offensive game. Since then he has played half a season and still has no offensive game. So why is he all of a sudden worth top 10 picks in back to back drafts each of which are stronger than the one he was selected in?

Yes the metric is faulty but so is points, rebounds, blocks, steals and any other stat especially for a dude on the sixers. I like most posters dont watch much Noel, but he has yet to impress me.

Again, Id give up a first, but the dude is not what you make him out to be. I understand your point of view but I dont get why you feel like everyone or any metric which disagrees with you is an idiot. How about this:

Hibbert
Gasol
Drummond
Bogut
Gobert
Whiteside(eh)
Lopez
Cousins
Jordan
Ibaka
Duncan
Asik
Valanciunas
Lopez

Thats 14 very good- great defensive "rim protectors" and nearly all have better offensive games than Noel. This is why I would rather not sell the farm for Nerlen Noel.

Sorry for the 'tude but Im fired up today (IDK why)

Nerlens Noel is 20 years old.

When Chandler was 20 he posted essentially a slightly better offensive line and a slightly worse defensive one.

Asik was a 24 year old rookie posting a pretty terrible offensive stat line, he's averaged double digits in points once. The idea that his offensive game will be better than Noel's at the same age is a bit ridiculous.

DeAndre Jordan is a terrible offensive player, he's the biggest liability in basketball in a close game. He's a career 42% FT shooter.

Please compare Roy Hibbert's rookie season, when he was 22 BTW, to Nerlens Noel's...

Rudy Gobert's offensive game ends 2 feet from the basket.

But if your standard is that Nerlens Noel isn't Tim Duncan I guess I'll have to concede that one, good luck prying the next Tim Duncan away from a team.

I could go on, but it's pretty obvious you've got a narrative you're much more interested in sticking to than you are in accepting the facts.

DeAndre Jordan shoots 71% from the field.  Gobert 63%.  Noel 44%.  They're not even close.  Jordan averages 4.7 offensive rebounds per game.  He's a superb offensive player.

What did Rudy Gobert shoot from the field as a rookie?

Jordan is also 6 years older, he should be better offensively. He's always going to be a better finisher, but Noel has flashed a decent passing game from the high post occasionally and looks like he could be a 70% FT shooter a few years down the line. Nerlens is already a better defensive player. The Clippers are the 18th ranked defense in the NBA behind defensive anchor DeAndre Jordan...

[RAAAAAAAANDY]

FYI his last 5 games:

12.6 points, 6.6 rebounds, 2.4 assists, 3.6 blocks, 2 steals, 53% shooting, 71% shooting from the line, 33mpg

This is gonna sound cray-cray, but I think the 20 year old highly-touted rookie coming off major surgery is actually... improving. 

Let's see how he improves when the rest of his athleticism comes back... and he's surrounded by actual nba players... and he learns how to play basketball.

He still can't catch a basketball. He drops 2-3 passes and 3-4 rebounds a game. It's bizarre, maybe he needs to pretend it's a roll of toilet paper like "Hot Hands" from the Little Giants or something.

[LarBrd33]

FYI his last 5 games:

12.6 points, 6.6 rebounds, 2.4 assists, 3.6 blocks, 2 steals, 53% shooting, 71% shooting from the line, 33mpg

This is gonna sound cray-cray, but I think the 20 year old highly-touted rookie coming off major surgery is actually... improving. 

Let's see how he improves when the rest of his athleticism comes back... and he's surrounded by actual nba players... and he learns how to play basketball.

He still can't catch a basketball. He drops 2-3 passes and 3-4 rebounds a game. It's bizarre, maybe he needs to pretend it's a roll of toilet paper like "Hot Hands" from the Little Giants or something.

Look, Noel is an elite prospect.  SOme folks here are going to read into his stats as a rookie, but it's pretty clear that kid has a shot to be an all-defense center.  He's only 20 years old and already an impact player there.  He shouldn't be expected to have any idea what he's doing right now, but the tools are there.  He was widely believed to be the best prospect in his draft and fell because of his injury.

You build championships with big men.  Essentially every champion ever has an an above-average/all-star big on the team.  Defensive bigs can impact a team's success in a monumental way.  Look at ancient KG's defensive impact on the Celtics.  He was still the MVP of this team even in the twilight of his years.   Noel clearly has the potential to be impact defensive big.   That makes him HUGELY valuable.

That said, there's a chance he becomes available.  Not because of anything negative about Noel, but because Joel Embiid is considered to be an all-world superstar prospect and there's a chance they land Okafor in the draft.  If that happens, it wouldn't be shocking to see Noel as the odd man out.  It would still take a whole lot.  Our pick wouldn't be enough.  Who exactly in the 7-11 range is going to impact the game on Noel's level?

[Boris Badenov]

FYI his last 5 games:

12.6 points, 6.6 rebounds, 2.4 assists, 3.6 blocks, 2 steals, 53% shooting, 71% shooting from the line, 33mpg

This is gonna sound cray-cray, but I think the 20 year old highly-touted rookie coming off major surgery is actually... improving. 

Let's see how he improves when the rest of his athleticism comes back... and he's surrounded by actual nba players... and he learns how to play basketball.

He still can't catch a basketball. He drops 2-3 passes and 3-4 rebounds a game. It's bizarre, maybe he needs to pretend it's a roll of toilet paper like "Hot Hands" from the Little Giants or something.

Look, Noel is an elite prospect.  SOme folks here are going to read into his stats as a rookie, but it's pretty clear that kid has a shot to be an all-defense center.  He's only 20 years old and already an impact player there.  He shouldn't be expected to have any idea what he's doing right now, but the tools are there.  He was widely believed to be the best prospect in his draft and fell because of his injury.

You build championships with big men.  Essentially every champion ever has an an above-average/all-star big on the team.  Defensive bigs can impact a team's success in a monumental way.  Look at ancient KG's defensive impact on the Celtics.  He was still the MVP of this team even in the twilight of his years.   Noel clearly has the potential to be impact defensive big.   That makes him HUGELY valuable.

That said, there's a chance he becomes available.  Not because of anything negative about Noel, but because Joel Embiid is considered to be an all-world superstar prospect and there's a chance they land Okafor in the draft.  If that happens, it wouldn't be shocking to see Noel as the odd man out.  It would still take a whole lot.  Our pick wouldn't be enough.

Agreed except I think our pick wouldn't be *nearly* enough even if PHL has a surplus of bigs. They'd have much better options than dealing with us.

Look at it this way. Suppose you're Milwaukee. You already have Parker, the prototypical scoring SF. Wouldn't you give up Giannis and another first for Noel? And wouldn't Philly be salivating at the prospect of an Embiid/Okafor/GA frontcourt? How could the Celtics possibly compete with that? Or suppose Minny offered their 2015 1st?

I mean, there are assets and there are assets. Hinkie's too smart to take three of our dimes for his quarter, when other teams can offer him quarter-for-quarter swaps. We should move on.

[tazzmaniac]

FYI his last 5 games:

12.6 points, 6.6 rebounds, 2.4 assists, 3.6 blocks, 2 steals, 53% shooting, 71% shooting from the line, 33mpg

This is gonna sound cray-cray, but I think the 20 year old highly-touted rookie coming off major surgery is actually... improving. 

Let's see how he improves when the rest of his athleticism comes back... and he's surrounded by actual nba players... and he learns how to play basketball.

He still can't catch a basketball. He drops 2-3 passes and 3-4 rebounds a game. It's bizarre, maybe he needs to pretend it's a roll of toilet paper like "Hot Hands" from the Little Giants or something.

Look, Noel is an elite prospect.  SOme folks here are going to read into his stats as a rookie, but it's pretty clear that kid has a shot to be an all-defense center.  He's only 20 years old and already an impact player there.  He shouldn't be expected to have any idea what he's doing right now, but the tools are there.  He was widely believed to be the best prospect in his draft and fell because of his injury.

You build championships with big men.  Essentially every champion ever has an an above-average/all-star big on the team.  Defensive bigs can impact a team's success in a monumental way.  Look at ancient KG's defensive impact on the Celtics.  He was still the MVP of this team even in the twilight of his years.   Noel clearly has the potential to be impact defensive big.   That makes him HUGELY valuable.

That said, there's a chance he becomes available.  Not because of anything negative about Noel, but because Joel Embiid is considered to be an all-world superstar prospect and there's a chance they land Okafor in the draft.  If that happens, it wouldn't be shocking to see Noel as the odd man out.  It would still take a whole lot.  Our pick wouldn't be enough.  Who exactly in the 7-11 range is going to impact the game on Noel's level?

Here's an article on Noel and how the Sixers are trying to mold him into a PF that can coexist with Embiid.  I watched the Sixers/Heat game and Noel looks much better offensively.  I didn't realize Noel was from Massachusetts.   
http://articles.philly.com/2015-02-13/sports/59088062_1_nerlens-noel-joel-embiid-brett-brown

[RAAAAAAAANDY]

FYI his last 5 games:

12.6 points, 6.6 rebounds, 2.4 assists, 3.6 blocks, 2 steals, 53% shooting, 71% shooting from the line, 33mpg

This is gonna sound cray-cray, but I think the 20 year old highly-touted rookie coming off major surgery is actually... improving. 

Let's see how he improves when the rest of his athleticism comes back... and he's surrounded by actual nba players... and he learns how to play basketball.

He still can't catch a basketball. He drops 2-3 passes and 3-4 rebounds a game. It's bizarre, maybe he needs to pretend it's a roll of toilet paper like "Hot Hands" from the Little Giants or something.

Look, Noel is an elite prospect.  SOme folks here are going to read into his stats as a rookie, but it's pretty clear that kid has a shot to be an all-defense center.  He's only 20 years old and already an impact player there.  He shouldn't be expected to have any idea what he's doing right now, but the tools are there.  He was widely believed to be the best prospect in his draft and fell because of his injury.

You build championships with big men.  Essentially every champion ever has an an above-average/all-star big on the team.  Defensive bigs can impact a team's success in a monumental way.  Look at ancient KG's defensive impact on the Celtics.  He was still the MVP of this team even in the twilight of his years.   Noel clearly has the potential to be impact defensive big.   That makes him HUGELY valuable.

That said, there's a chance he becomes available.  Not because of anything negative about Noel, but because Joel Embiid is considered to be an all-world superstar prospect and there's a chance they land Okafor in the draft.  If that happens, it wouldn't be shocking to see Noel as the odd man out.  It would still take a whole lot.  Our pick wouldn't be enough.  Who exactly in the 7-11 range is going to impact the game on Noel's level?

You're preaching to the choir, I just find it bizarre his hands are that terrible. He's pretty good at passing, he's great at deflecting passes and blocking shots, and he is surprisingly not terrible at using a dribble or two on offense... He just literally cannot catch a basketball. It's just strange.