Nerlens Noel contract:
Nerlens Noel signed his second one year deal with the OKC Thunder worth $2.0 million. This is marginally higher than his $1.7 million deal he signed the season before. To say that this deal was good value for money is an understatement.
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Noel missed only 11 games this season through injury, playing 61 of a possible 72 games. In his limited playing time, he was 15th in the NBA in total blocks with 91 for the season. He was 11th in the NBA with 1.5 blocks per game. All of this in just 18.5 minutes per game.
Noel earned the same money as Muscala and less money than Darius Bazley and Terrance Ferguson. With the amount of money owed to the starters for the Thunder, this was a masterstroke from general manager, Sam Presti.
However, Noel is free to walk at the end of this season again. If he does not want to be a part of a rebuild then he will go. However, if he is happy with his role and the direction the OKC Thunder are going to take, then he will stay.
All of this is relevant to the grading of the contract for this season. Presti signed a key piece on another one year deal to see how he would perform with the new players on the team. Presti is now in a better position to reward Noel, given he will make moves this offseason.
Contract Grade – A
Season Grade:
Noel did everything asked of him except being able to effectively guard the Houston Rockets small ball offense in the playoffs. When he started in Steven Adams’ absence, he was a force inside, helping this team to its surprising success.
Season Grade: B+