Nerlens Noel done with the Nets

He can provide much-needed veteran size backing up Claxton, but the Nets can only sign him to a second 10-day deal before they must decide whether to keep him. “I don’t really look at the days of the contract,” Noel told The Post. “I just come here and hoop, prepare before I get here and everything else takes care of itself simply. I’m a 10-year veteran in this league, so I don’t really look at all the small things like that. -via New York Post / March 10, 2023

Noel, who was signed Monday on a 10-day contract and made his Nets debut Tuesday, made his first start with his new team and fourth of the season. “Yeah, so I thought you saw a little bit everything,” Vaughn said of Noel. “He continues to get himself in shape. The charge that he took was great, putting his body on the line, so that was great. A block was great. So those things we want to continue to see from him. “He’ll continue to learn conceptually what we want to do on the defensive end, and we’re switching back and forth between defenses, you know, so you got to turn your brain on and off and back on again. So that challenge is what’s ahead of him.” -via New York Post / March 10, 2023

Noel signed a 10-day contract with the Nets on Monday, and coach Jacque Vaughn vowed to play him Tuesday. Vaughn did just that, playing Noel 17:48 in the Nets’ 118-96 victory over the Rockets, his first game since a 3:22 cameo for Detroit on Feb. 8, his last appearance with the Pistons before he was bought out and waived. “It felt good,” said Noel, 28, a former Knick. “It felt good to get some rust off. Yeah, a little winded in the first minutes, but it’s normal. Nobody can get away from that. But I’ve been doing a fair share. But at this point I just want to keep building on that, defensive-first mentality, rebounding, just try and make sure I bring a winning mentality to the game.” -via New York Post / March 8, 2023