Jabari Parker And The History Of Top Picks Recovering From Injury
Nov 13, 2013; Philadelphia, PA, USA; Philadelphia 76ers center Nerlens Noel (4) and guard Michael Carter-Williams (1) (L to R) watch from the bench during the fourth quarter against the Houston Rockets at Wells Fargo Center. The Sixers defeated the Rockets 123-117. Mandatory Credit: Howard Smith-USA TODAY Sports
Nerlens Noel, PF/C, Philadelphia 76ers, 2013 #6 Pick.
Before a season-ending injury while playing with the Kentucky Wildcats, Noel was projected as the top pick of the 2013 draft.
His otherworldly 4.4 blocks per game, even as a freshman, was more than enough to inspire the salivary glands of GMs from the NBA’s low-rung teams. Add in his .590% field goal percentage and you have the coveted cornerstone center that teams dream about.
Despite the injury Noel still landed just out of the top-5, falling to the 76ers at #6.
After missing the entire 2013-14 season, Noel returned in 2014-15 , severely outplaying Alex Len, Otto Porter, and Cody Zeller– three of the players taken before him.
Since he missed his first season due to the injury we only have his so-called rookie stats to go off of.
Post-Injury Stats: 9.9 ppg, 8.1 rpg, 1.9 bpg, .462% shooting.
For a first year player those are very encouraging numbers. He could easily develop into a 15/10 sort of player.
Should Jabari Parker follow that development then Parker should project as a 20/7/5 sort of player.
Jabari Outlook: A solid, relatively injury free campaign? Yes please.
Next: Adam Morrison