OKC Thunder: 5 things to like and dislike surrounding big man Nerlens Noel

Excellent Running the Lane

Noel is excellent running the floor and big men need to be rewarded for their work, especially facets of the game that aren’t as sexy as highlight dunks or impressive cross-overs. The fifth year big man possesses a big motor and when featured as part of the offense is one of the most spectacular big men out there.

In the play below, Noel corrals the rebound, follows Russell Westbrook down the lane and receives a pass for an easy dunk in the paint.

At this point, Noel was completely dominating the Suns inside and this was Russ’ way of giving back. The big man emphatically finished the two-handed slam then proceeded to help Russ off the floor.

What to avoid

With all seven foot big men, running up and down the floor is a lot harder than being a 6’3 guard. Oklahoma City must do a better job rewarding bigs on the run. Plays like this are unacceptable:

Paul George should’ve given the ball up when Noel ran ahead instead of messing around with it. Rewarding centers who are ahead on the break is important for confidence and the Thunder can’t miss opportunities like this.

Plays off the dribble

At this juncture of the game, Noel was rolling. In a surprise play, the big man crossed over veteran big man Tyson Chandler at the top of the key and finished the left handed sledgehammer for the and-one highlight.

Nerlens isn’t going to do this with regularity but it shows the kind of talent he possesses, especially in the open floor.