Mavs 'Touch Base' with Pistons on Nerlens Noel Trade

The Dallas Mavericks have gotten back on track lately, but they could still use some more rim protection going forward. A trade with the Detroit Pistons for old friend Nerlens Noel might be an affordable option.

Dalton Trigg | Dec 8, 2022

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When the Dallas Mavericks signed 34-year-old center JaVale McGee in free agency, it was done with the idea that he'd add some much-needed rim protection that was lacking in the team's Western Conference Finals loss to the Golden State Warriors. Unfortunately for Dallas, though, its vision for McGee hasn't been realized, as he lost his starting spot just nine games into the season and has now racked up five DNP-CDs.

According to a report from SNY's Ian Begley, the Mavs might be trying to find that extra rim protection by trading for old pal Nerlens Noel.

"Also on the trade front, the Dallas Mavericks and Detroit Pistons touched base recently on trade talks in which Nerlens Noel’s name came up," Begley writes. "Noel, the former Knick, has drawn interest from several contending teams who have struggled with rim protection. Noel was a key force for New York’s defense in 2021, when the club made a surprise run to the playoffs."

The Mavs traded for Noel once before with the Philadelphia 76ers in 2017, but the attempted reclamation project didn't go past the 2017-18 season. Since then, the Mavs have remodeled their front office and coaching situations, and Noel has had productive stints with the Oklahoma City Thunder and New York Knicks.

For his career, Noel averages 7.3 points, 6.2 rebounds and 1.5 blocks in 22.3 minutes per game. His fit with the Mavs would be much better this time around, not only because they have a specific need for what he brings to the table, but also because MVP candidate Luka Doncic is part of the equation now.

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Published Dec 8, 2022

DALTON TRIGG

Dalton Trigg is the Editor-In-Chief for Dallas Basketball, as well as the Executive Editor overseeing Inside The Rockets, Inside The Spurs, All Knicks, and The Magic Insider. He is the founder and host for the Mavs Step Back Podcast, which is a proud part of the Blue Wire podcast network. Trigg graduated from the University of Southern Mississippi’s College of Business and Economic Development with a bachelor’s degree in entrepreneurship in 2016. After spending a few years with multiple Dallas Mavericks-related blogs, including SB Nation’s Mavs Moneyball, Trigg joined DallasBasketball.com as a staff writer in 2018 and never looked back. At the start of 2022, he was promoted to the EIC title he holds now. Through the years, Trigg has conducted a handful of high-profile one-on-one interviews to add to his resume — in both writing and podcasting. Some of his biggest interviews have been with Mavs owner Mark Cuban, Mavs GM Nico Harrison, now-retired legend Dirk Nowitzki and many other current/former players and team staffers. Many of those interviews and other articles by Trigg have been aggregated by other well-known sports media websites, such as Yahoo Sports, CBS Sports, Bleacher Report and others. You can find Trigg on all major social media channels, but his most prevalent platform is on Twitter. Whether it’s posting links to his DBcom work, live-tweeting Mavs games or merely giving his opinions on things going on with Dallas and the rest of the NBA, the daily content never stops rolling. For any inquiries, please email Dalton@MavsStepBack.com.