Nerlens Noel 'will be excited-nervous' in return to the court

After sitting out the entire season to rehab, Nerlens Noel is beyond excited to play for theSixers when summer league action begins.

Noel will join other rookies, second-year players and free agents when the Sixers field a team for the Orlando Pro Summer League, which runs from July 5-11. The organization will also take part in the Las Vegas Summer League from July 11-21.

Noel insisted on Tuesday’s edition of Philly Sports Talk that he will participate in both events.

“Most definitely, I will be an active participant,” Noel said via Skype. “I am really excited. It has been a long time since I have been able to play in an organized basketball game. I am just going to step out there and do what I have been doing my whole life.

“I think I will be nervous because it has been awhile since I played but I think it will be an excited nervous. I will be anxious when the ball goes up, but I will want to settle into the game. I am here where I am today because I stay true to what I do.”

Noel tore his left ACL on Feb. 12, 2013. He had is knee surgically repaired in March of that same year and opted to enter the NBA draft instead of returning to Kentucky.

The New Orleans Pelicans selected Noel with the sixth overall pick last June before he was traded to the Sixers for All-Star point guard Jrue Holiday and what eventually turned into the No. 10 selection in the upcoming NBA draft.

The Sixers chose a cautious path and kept the now 20-yea-old sidelined for the entire 82-game schedule.

That didn’t stop Noel from wanting to get out on the court. The 6-foot-11 center admitted he was looking to return against his hometown Boston Celtics when he sent out his mysterious “4-4-14” tweet during the season.

“That was the date I was looking to play,” Noel said. “But I sat down with Sam (Hinkie) and we said it was a higher risk than reward and came up with it was best if I didn’t play.

“I wanted to play awhile before that. I wanted to start practicing but they didn’t want me practicing. Patience was the biggest thing in this whole process. Everyone in the Sixers' organization stayed strong with me and helped me work on my game in the meantime.”

Spending the season on the sideline wasn’t all about rehab. Noel said he benefitted greatly from watching players like Tyson Chandler, Kevin Garnett and LaMarcus Aldridge from his seat on the bench.

He also humbly stated that he has an edge over others next season to win NBA Rookie of the Year, but that is on the backburner of concerns for the big man.

“I am not someone who is too worried about that,” Noel said. “I really just want to focus on the best season that I can have and get things off right. With the younger players that we are going to get, we want to grow this team into a championship contending team."

For now, Noel is all about getting prepared to finally take the court in a Sixers uniform this summer.

“I am just getting back from the practice facility where we have offseason voluntary workouts,” he said. “A good amount of guys have been working there trying to improve our games.”

-- Dei Lynam, CSN Philadelphia