Oklahoma City Thunder center Nerlens Noel won't pick up his player option for the 2019-2020 NBA season.
According to Shams Charania of The Athletic, “Thunder center Nerlens Noel will not pick up his $1.9M player option for 2019-20 season and will be a free agent, league sources tell @TheAthleticNBA @Stadium. Noel and Thunder will discuss potential reunion, but several other teams are expected to express interest.”
Noel, 24, is entering his sixth season in the NBA on his third team. This past season for the Thunder, Noel averaged 4.9 points and 4.2 rebounds in 77 games.
Noel's best season came in 2015-2016 when he averaged 11.1 points, 8.1 rebounds and and 1.8 assists per game.
Oklahoma City is interested in bringing back Noel as a backup to center Steven Adams, one of the best interior players in the league on both sides of the court.
Oklahoma City is over the $109M salary cap and could potentially trade assets like Adams, Dennis Schroder, and Andre Roberson.
Noel could return as a cheaper option for the team if it decided to go that way, which could mean a set back for the team in terms of chasing for a championship now.
Most of OklahomaCity's cap space is directed toward point guard Russell Westbrook and small forward Paul George.
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