Nerlens Noel signs with the Sacramento Kings
Veteran center Nerlens Noel has signed a one-year, $3.1MM contract with the Sacramento Kings, ESPN NBA insider Adrian Wojnarowski reported earlier this week.
Free agent C Nerlens Noel has agreed on a one-year, $3.1M deal with the Sacramento Kings, his agent @georgelangberg of GSL Sports Group tells ESPN. Noel gives the Kings a defensive presence in the frontline rotation.
— Adrian Wojnarowski (@wojespn) July 18, 2023
In his career, Noel has averages of 7.1 points, 6.1 rebounds, 1.5 blocks and 1.3 steals. This upcoming season, the veteran big man will play in his 10th NBA season for his seventh different franchise. He’s spent time with the Philadelphia 76ers, Dallas Mavericks, Oklahoma City Thunder, New York Knicks, Detroit Pistons and Brooklyn Nets.
Last season, Noel appeared in a total of 17 games with Detroit and Brooklyn, but managed to play just over 10 minutes per game for the franchises. He averaged 2.1 points and 2.7 rebounds on 37.1 percent shooting from the field.
While offensively limited, he’s a defensive-minded center who will provide hustle and energy and will immediately arguably be the Kings’ best defensive center. The signing for Sacramento looks to fill the void of a reliable and defensive-minded backup center, as that was clearly Sacramento’s biggest need in the playoffs.
Noel will compete for backup minutes behind All-NBA center Domantas Sabonis. The other big men on Sacramento’s roster include Alex Len, Trey Lyles, Sasha Vezenkov and Neemias Queta. The signing of Noel adds to a laundry list of moves the Kings made this offseason.
They re-signed Domantas Sabonis to a $217 million extension and re-signed Harrison Barnes. Sacramento also brought back veteran big men Len and Lyles. The Kings also added to their big depth by signing Euroleague MVP Sasha Vezenkov.
In a deal with the Indiana Pacers, the Kings acquired third-year wing Chris Duarte for two second-round draft picks. Finally, In the draft, they added Xavier’s Colby Jones and Furman’s Jalen Slawson in the second round.
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