Can Nerlens Noel Improve Offensively This Year?

Apr 8, 2015; Philadelphia, PA, USA; Philadelphia 76ers center Nerlens Noel (4) goes for a shot against Washington Wizards forward Kris Humphries (43) during the second half at Wells Fargo Center. The Wizards won 119-90. Mandatory Credit: Bill Streicher-USA TODAY Sports

Nerlens Noel was the best defensive player from his draft class as a rookie last season. Okay, that’s up for debate, but I don’t know many people who would argue the opinion that the Philadelphia 76ers’ power forward was the best defensive rookie.

In fact, Noel seemed to master a lost art in the NBA last year, the “reverse posterization.” When players tried to dunk on Noel, he showed them that they couldn’t. One of the best defensive players around the league last year was his huge stuff on James Harden.

With his 5.7 defensive rebounds last season, as well as 1.8 steals and 1.9 blocks per game, he’s got the stats to back up that he was a defensive monster, and a real trouble to teams who were looking to get in the paint last year.

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Unfortunately, he was lacking on the other side of the floor. He was able to nearly average 10 points per game, a good amount, but a majority of his shots were very close to the hoop, within 10 feet.

The Sixers as a team struggled offensively. In fact, they were one of the worst teams in the league in this realm. Based on offensive ratings, they were last in the league. This clearly calls for more players on the team to step up and start producing more points.

Although shooting isn’t necessarily his job as a power forward, this league is calling more and more for an offensively skilled four spot. I would like to see him become more of a shooter, and rely less on lobs from his teammates.

Here’s some potential ways he could improve his offensive contribution.

Next: Close Range Game

Mar 30, 2015; Philadelphia, PA, USA; Philadelphia 76ers center Nerlens Noel (4) juggles the ball after missing on a dunk attempt against the Los Angeles Lakers during the first quarter at Wells Fargo Center. Mandatory Credit: Bill Streicher-USA TODAY Sports

CLOSE RANGE

We expect him to improve himself, but can he turn himself into a player that is able to be more balanced, and focused on offense just as much as he is focused on defense? Unfortunately, history tells us no, we can’t expect him to become a shooter.

As one of you kindly pointed out on Twitter, this has been a learning experience, as it’s the first time Noel has really had to do something other than play as a center. He’s accustomed to close to the hoop offense, and hasn’t been utilized much as a power forward, which is continually proving to need to be more stretched out.

Noel attempted zero three pointers with Philly last season, and even back to his days playing college basketball, he didn’t attempt a single three pointer. It’s clear range isn’t something that he has. He plays close to the hoop. Noel has a hesitation when he gets the ball anywhere past the free throw line, even when it’s a shot he should be able to make. This is alarming, for sure.

His preference to play smaller ball is fine, but he still needs to find a way to make that work to the Sixers offensive advantage. He can do this in plenty of ways, which he did last season in several instances.

For one, he must rebound on offense. He’s already sticking near the hoop, and known for turning one man’s trash into another two points for the Sixers. Second chance points can often be the difference in close games, meaning Noel’s ability to rebound and get physical become increasingly more important.

He already averaged 2.5 offensive rebounds per game last year. A good goal would be to try and get that up to three per game.

Physicality is also something that has to be utilized. Despite appearing as a smaller big man to some, he proved he can muscle himself inside the paint, even against some of the league’s biggest players. He dropped thirty in a matchup against the Los Anfgeles Clippers’ DeAndre Jordan, and really showed Jordan that he could take him to town.

Backdoor plays are a speciality of Noel. He can often sneak in behind the defense and find his way to the hoop for a score. He’s got to continue this, and even improve it, adding in wrinkles to make it work better, because eventually, teams will catch on, figuring out just how to stop this signature play of Noel’s. How does he add wrinkles? Make himself a weapon from deeper ranges…

Next: Expanding Range

Mar 11, 2015; Philadelphia, PA, USA; Philadelphia 76ers center Nerlens Noel (4) is congratulated by forward Robert Covington (33) after a dunk against the Chicago Bulls during the first half at Wells Fargo Center. Mandatory Credit: Bill Streicher-USA TODAY Sports

EXPANDING THE GAME

All of these have been ways Noel can add to the offense from what he’s already been doing, close range games. If he could expand, he opens up an entire new chapter.

As we told you on Twitter yesterday, his shooting percentage drastically changed when he took any shots beyond 10 feet. He seems to be hesitant when he gets the ball out there in shooting situations. He must be more assertive. Again, it’s a learning curve that he will get over, and improve on over time.

Once he is able to sell himself as a player with range, he can draw the defense out. They won’t abandon him once he leaves the 10 foot range. They’ll stay on him, and he will be able to open up the lane, or open up more opportunities for himself to cut inside and getting back to what he does best: shots in the key.

His backdoor will have an added wrinkle once he can expand. Players will follow him out further, meaning he can more easily distract them, if they are worried about both his perimeter shots and his shots close to the hoop.

All in all, his short range right now is fine, but his offensive contribution could be greatly expanded with more range.

So, that’s the long answer. But the short answer is, yes, of course Noel can contribute to this struggling offense. He does have things of his own to improve, but he’s extremely capable of improving and I’m excited to see him do so.