Noel is good. I'm pretty meh on him too.
Don't see what all the hype is about.
Everytime I watch him it seems as though his hands are terrible around the basket on offense.
Is he any better than Amir Johnson? (ableit younger).
Oh yeah, for sure, even if it's just by virtue of him being younger and supremely athletic.
But, no, his defense is definitely elite. You should look towards his rookie year more than last year due to the Sixers playing him out of position at PF. He averaged 1.8 steals and 1.9 blocks per game, which is significantly better than Amir has done at any time throughout his career. And it wasn't just a one year thing, too. Even out of position at the PF position last year, he still had 1.8 steals and 1.5 blocks per game in less than 30 minutes per game. Those are really good numbers for a young center on a really, really bad team, and those types of stats aren't even really inflated stats that one gets on a bad team.
Offensively he'll give 10-12 points in lobs, trash plays, and offensive rebounding putbacks each night, which is only marginally more than Amir gives you, but what you're trading for him for is his rim protection, perimeter defensive versatility, rebounding, and overall athleticism.