Drooling Over Potential: Nerlens Noel Contains Dwight Howard

Mandatory Credit: Bill Streicher-USA TODAY Sports

Nerlens Noel had his hands full on Monday night. In a matchup against the Houston Rockets, the rookie drew the daunting task of matching up against an eight time All-Star and three time Defensive Player of the Year in Dwight Howard. In 30 minutes of play, though, Noel did a formidable job. Howard failed to get into a rhythm offensively all night long, finishing the game with a season-low of 11 points. He only attempted four free throws and committed five turnovers in the Rockets’ 104-93 victory.

Howard has a clear advantage over Noel. The two are around the same height, but Noel is 40 pounds lighter and eight years younger. Noel isn’t blind to that, of course, so he compensated by giving Howard different looks throughout the game to make his life difficult. Noel relied more on his quickness rather then strength to get around Howard when fighting for position in the post, and he did his work early. Instead of letting Howard catch the ball in his sweet spot and making a quick move towards the basket, Noel stayed active. He flailed his arms around and jumped back-and-forth between being on Howard’s hip and fronting him, thereby forcing Howard to make adjustments and catch the ball from further out.

There were times, of course, when Howard did catch the ball on the low block. In those instances, Noel struggled to prevent him from backing his way down to the rim. But there were several times throughout the game where Noel used his quick hands to poke the ball away from Howard in the middle of making a move, which forced the Rockets to reset their play or scramble midway through a possession.

Noel also switched onto smaller players several times throughout the game, like James Harden and Terrence Jones. Although it didn’t happen often, he was able to stick with them on drives to the basket and force them into settling for tough shots.

Strength is going to be the main issue for Noel on the defensive end as he progresses through his career. Although he is nimble, quick and has good instincts for a player of his size, bigger centers will be able to back their way down to the basket rather easily against him.

Noel did do a good job of disrupting plays by knocking away entry passes against Howard, but when Howard did catch the ball just outside the key and was given ample time and space to make a couple of dribbles before going up for a shot, Noel had no chance of stopping him.

Howard also dominated Noel on the boards. In 30 minutes, Noel had only one rebound to Dwight’s 14. It’s not that Noel can’t rebound. If anything, he did the right thing by running towards Howard once a shot went up to box him out. Noel just couldn’t stop Howard from getting to where he wanted to be — it was far too easy for him to get position.

The 76ers wont win many games this season and they’re off to a rough — but expected — start at 0-4. But for Nerlens Noel, who is expected to be one of the two pillars of the franchise in years to come, it gives him an opportunity to learn the game without having the pressure of producing big numbers or getting victories. Seeing as he’s still incredibly raw on both ends of the court (especially on offense) it’s a perfect scenario for him.

Heading into the draft, Noel had the reputation of being a defensive stopper and elite rim protector. The transition to the NBA is hard, though, and it takes a long time for players to successfully make the necessary adjustments. But that’s exactly why it’s promising when Noel plays as well as he did on Monday night. He didn’t stop Howard single handedly, but he contained him. He made his life difficult, forcing him to catch the ball further out in the post and not getting easy looks at the rim. There were times when he looked outmatched, but there were others when it appeared as though he had Howard’s number. And along the way, he made history.

It’s going to be a long season for 76ers fans, but at least they get to watch the development of Nerlens Noel. It should be fun.