The New York Knicks finished with a winning record for the first-time since the 2012-13 season and they reached the playoffs for the first-time since then too. Defense was the “name of the game” for the Knicks this year and one of their big contributors on that end of the court was Nerlens Noel. 

After being drafted 6th overall in 2013, Nerlens Noel had two solid seasons in Philadelphia, averaging 10.5 points, 8.1 rebounds and 1.7 blocks, but he quickly became a player many forgot about. He bounced around the league from Philadelphia to Dallas to Oklahoma City to New York this past year and this year seemed to be his last chance to prove himself in the NBA. 

Noel did just that and definitely earned himself a new contract after stepping up for New York this year. With Mitchell Robinson going down with multiple injuries, the Knicks were thin at the center position with just Nerlens Noel and Taj Gibson, but Noel really stepped up for them as a multi-purpose center. 

He may not have been a factor for the Knicks offensively, only averaging 5.1 points on 61.4% shooting from the floor, but he was a catalyst for them on the defensive-end of the floor. Noel averaged 2.2 blocks per game this year and finished with a total of 141 blocks, both ranking him 3rd in the league in each category. 

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As a guy who can likely be signed with a team’s mid-level exception, Nerlens Noel has quickly become an intriguing center on the free agent market who has drawn the attention of numerous teams in the league. NBA Analysis Network’s own Evan Massey has reported that the Raptors, Kings, Hornets and Trail Blazers, along with the Knicks, are a few teams who have expressed interest in signing Noel this offseason. 

With this said, let’s take a look at the Top-4 landing spots for the 27-year-old center this year and which teams make the most sense for Nerlens Noel to sign with.