Nerlens Noel wants to play. Badly. He even tweeted about it.
Not surprisingly, the Sixers are forcing him to take things slow.
For the first time since October Noel spoke with the media on Tuesday (as you can see from the video above). Among the things he said was that he has added 8-10 pounds of weight and has increased his vertical leap by three inches. The Sixers also have been retooling his jump shot, something we are not going to get to see until Summer League.
Here are a few highlights, courtesy Dei Lynam of CSNPhilly.com.
• Regarding 4-4-14 tweet: “It was a goal of mine to be able to come back and be cleared to play by the Sixers by then, but I was not, and that’s that.”
• His wanting to play: “Obviously, I do want to play,” Noel said. “A 19-year-old wants to get out there. I want to show my abilities, just be able to play ball. It has been tough, but it is something I had to do. I definitely look forward to playing. Sam Hinkie is a great GM. He put me in this position to play for Philadelphia. I understand the risk/reward, but I am very eager and because of my competitiveness, I really want to play basketball again.”