Free agent center Nerlens Noel has quietly gone unsigned. Despite strong play after he was traded from the Sixers to the Mavericks, Noel has not received big-money offers like he had hoped. In order to try and change that, Noel has reportedly hired agent Rich Paul of Klutch Sports to represent him according to Michael Scotto of Basketball Insiders.
Nerlens Noel has hired agent Rich Paul of Klutch Sports for representation, @BBallInsiders has learned.
— Michael Scotto (@MikeAScotto) August 21, 2017
Nerlens Noel said last month that the negations with the Mavericks were not going well. Those comments came just a week after they were reportedly very far apart in terms of money, so things are not improving. Paul has a history of getting his clients very close to their desired dollar amount, evidenced most recently with Kentavious Caldwell-Pope and the Los Angeles Lakers. Paul also represents Eric Bledsoe, Tristan Thompson, and LeBron James just to name a few. Thompson was in a similar case as Noel, and he eventually got paid by the Cleveland Cavaliers.
In 22 games with the Mavericks, Noel averaged 8.5 points per game to go along with 6.8 rebounds and just over a block. While not initially impressive, that came in 22 minutes per game and 12 starts. Mavericks’ team president and general manager Donnie Nelson called Noel and ‘starter kit Tyson Chandler”, so the tools are certainly there. Dallas also placed high priority on retaining Noel, but that sentiment may have changed since.
