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No mistaking Nerlens Noel's progress

It's still too early to definitely tell what type of player 76ers center Nerlens Noel will become, but as he finishes the final quarter of his first NBA season, there is no denying the improvement he has shown.

76ers rookie Nerlens Noel. (Derick E. Hingle/USA Today Sports)
76ers rookie Nerlens Noel. (Derick E. Hingle/USA Today Sports)Read more

It's still too early to definitely tell what type of player 76ers center Nerlens Noel will become, but as he finishes the final quarter of his first NBA season, there is no denying the improvement he has shown.

After missing last season while recovering from ACL surgery, there was a question about how the 6-foot-11, 228-pound rookie from Kentucky would hold up from the physical pounding in the NBA.

Noel has missed just four games and appears to be getting stronger as the season wears on. He is certainly becoming self-assured on the court.

"My confidence has increased a lot, especially from early in the season when I was being so hesitant and thinking so much," Noels said after scoring 17 points, hitting all seven field goal attempts and adding seven rebounds in Monday's 114-103 loss to the visiting Toronto Raptors. "Now it is at a point where I stuck with it and knew it would turn around and all the work I put in last year and this year is definitely coming about, and I continue to get better and better."

Noel is still extremely raw offensively and generates many of his points on putbacks, dunks and in transition. He's also making 61.7 percent of his free throws, which may not seem like much, but if anybody saw the painstaking drills that he and coach Brett Brown did last year, just reworking his awkward shot, it's a major improvement.

On the whole, he is averaging 8.8 points, 7.3 rebounds and 1.9 blocked shots. He has scored in double figures in eight of the last nine games and in that time Noel is averaging 12.4 points, 8.1 rebounds and 2.9 blocked shots.

"I am so proud of his evolution and development," Brown said. "He's really starting to grow as a leader outside of what we see on the court."

Others have noticed. Raptors forward Patrick Patterson, who had 15 points and four rebounds off the bench in Monday's win, like Noel, is a former University of Kentucky Wildcat.

"I am proud of him and like to see my Kentucky guys play well," Patterson said of Noel. "He is playing like an elite player."

Patterson compares Noel to Tyson Chandler of Dallas, who is among the top defensive centers in the NBA.

"He is more agile and a lot quicker than Tyson and can move his feet and causes a problem for taller, heavier centers," Patterson said. "He uses his quickness to get to the ball whether on rebounds or loose balls."

Noel said another key is the work he has done in the weight room.

"I probably added five or six pounds from the beginning of the season," he said. "I think that helped my game as well as being able to rebound a little better and take the pounding in the NBA."

The Sixers, who visit Oklahoma City on Wednesday, are 13-47, but Noel hasn't allowed the losing to affect his game.

"I think he's confident," Brown said. "We're seeing him get better and better."

Masked man. The Thunder's Russell Westbrook, the second-leading scorer in the NBA at 26.5 points per game, may return to the lineup against the Sixers. Westbrook missed Sunday's game with a broken cheekbone. He wore a mask in Tuesday's practice and will wear one in games, Thunder coach Scott Brooks said.

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This story contains information from the Associated Press.