4. Nerlens Noel, Oklahoma City Thunder
If things don’t work out on an established playoff team like the Oklahoma City Thunder, Nerlens Noel‘s career could very well teeter on the edge of playing overseas. Not that there’s anything wrong with that, but for a former No. 6 overall NBA Draft pick, it’d represent quite a depressing spiral out of the league.
It was only three years ago that Noel looked like a two-way force for the Philadelphia 76ers, averaging 11.1 points, 8.1 rebounds, 1.8 steals and 1.5 blocks per game in just his second season. Unfortunately, the Sixers’ center logjam, injuries and his own bad attitude kept him from contributing on the court until he was booted out the door.
With the Dallas Mavericks, he went from potential cornerstone to Rick Carlisle‘s doghouse in an instant, averaging 4.4 points and 5.6 rebounds in 15.7 minutes per game last year in a meager 30 appearances. In OKC, he’ll be providing breathers for Steven Adams. Hopefully the reduced role and better injury luck helps him finally prove he can help a winning NBA team. He doesn’t have much time to assimilate though, with only a $2 million player option for 2019-20 to fall back on.