Early in free agency, it appeared as if the Thunder and center Nerlens Noel had come to an agreement on a deal that would land the center on his third team in seven years. Instead, Noel and the Thunder hit a snag in their negotiations and decided to re-evaluate the initial commitment.
There was a fear that the Thunder could lose Noel with many teams in the market for quality bigs, but the Thunder remained in contact with Noel and his team and worked to put together a deal that would work for both sides.
On Monday afternoon, ESPN reported that the Thunder and Noel were able to agree on another deal, separate from the first commitment.
Noel had a rough start to his career, becoming the odd man out during the Philadelphia 76ers “trust the process” rebuild era. Noel carved out a role for himself in Oklahoma City and is a great piece to bring back to a Thunder frontcourt that features Steven Adams, Jerami Grant, Markeiff Morris and Patrick Patterson.
