Around draft time in 2013, Nerlens Noel’s stock was much in question. An ACL tear in February of that year scared teams off from the Kentucky big man, whose entire game essentially relied on his vertical supremacy and explosiveness - shot-blocking, playing passing lanes, dunking, etc. Five teams passed on Noel on draft night - the Cleveland Cavaliers, Orlando Magic, Washington Wizards, Charlotte Hornets and Phoenix Suns - all seemingly lacking the confidence in his health or the patience to stand by for a year while he rehabbed his left knee.

All it took was one confident and long-term thinking general manager to buy low on the injured center. Sam Hinkie moved up to the sixth slot by selling high on former All-Star point guard Jrue Holiday, and added a 2014 top-five protected first-rounder in the process as well. Now, almost two years later, that patience is paying tangible dividends for the Sixers.

After being sidelined for all of 13-14, Noel has been a menace on the defensive side of the ball. The 76ers, already the league’s 11th-best defense, are 3.8 points better defensively per 100 possessions with him on the floor, touting a defensive rating of 100.1 in those 2,000-plus minutes.

Noel’s impressive defensive efficiency stems from his rim protection. Despite his frame, has the ever-improving ability to drop back and defend the rim like a traditional two nine big, a la Roy Hibbert. In fact, per Nylon Calculus’ rim protection metrics, Noel is sixth in the league in Points Saved per 36 minutes (2.02). We saw this in his game from the get-go. But unlike a lot of the league’s best rim protectors, he’s capable of making plays anywhere on the floor on defense, not just around the basket.

For example, he’s consistently been a nightmare for ball-handlers in the pick-and-roll. In a game against the Lakers on Mar. 30, he was tasked with defending a pick-and-roll and a subsequent pick-and-pop in the same possession, and helped keep both ball-handlers - Jordan Clarkson and Wayne Ellington, respectively - under pressure successfully.

On the first pick-and-roll, Noel’s man, Ryan Kelly, sets a screen on Ish Smith hoping to free up space for Jordan Clarkson. But Noel reads this ahead of time and aggressively shows on Clarkson while Smith goes over the screen, and Clarkson is forced to give up the ball.

A few seconds later, Wayne Ellington finds himself with the ball in his hands at the opposite wing, where Kelly screens JaKarr Sampson and pops out for a three. Noel and Sampson don’t miss a beat, and this time use their imposing length to blitz Ellington in an all-out double-team, forcing a quick turnover and an ensuing fast break opportunity.

We just don’t see players of that size move so fluidly around the perimeter and laterally against guards very often. A few weeks back against Atlanta, Noel even managed to strip the ball from Jeff Teague.

His frame may have raised questions about his defensive readiness when he was drafted, but his instincts are evidently off the charts.

It’s important to stress that Noel’s ability on defense is in its early stages, and he’s a long way from a finished product. He still gets bullied by a vast majority of the league’s front court players, and his rebounding will be suspect and inconsistent until he builds up some more muscle, works on his positioning, or both. But it’s clear that he’s showing signs of being a special, versatile talent on that end.

Meanwhile, offensively, it was always going to be much easier for him to impress -  there were quite literally no expectations for him. And unsurprisingly, when he first trotted out, he looked deserving of such a label. He didn’t work within the flow of the offense (if the Sixers’ brutal half-court sets even qualify as “offense”) and looked about as polished with the ball as Edward Scissorhands. But as of late, playing with Ish Smith (whom he referred to as “the first true point guard” he’s ever played with), he’s contributed on that end, showcasing his budding faceup game and getting more comfortable in the pick-and-roll.

About 60 percent of Noel’s attempts and 75 percent of his makes this season have come from inside five feet, and as shown in the pick-and-roll above, alley-oops are his bread and butter. His handles are dubious for the most part, so any opportunity he has to put the ball in the basket without having to put it on the floor is a plus, and those alley-oops account for about 15 percent of his made field goals. But as of late, he’s drifted a bit from his comfort zone and shown more of a willingness to let it fly from further out. Since the All-Star break (although still not necessarily trigger-happy), he’s shooting 8-20 from the 10-14 feet range after going 9-41 pre-All Star. Some of that is an ode to better chemistry with Ish Smith, who has already assisted almost as many of Noel’s buckets as Michael Carter-Williams did (41 to 49). But some of it is clearly a newfound confidence; he’s always been given space, but now when dared to shoot, he’ll occasionally at least try to make you pay.

Now, Noel’s growth into a force defensively has been admirable, and way ahead of schedule - his 4.6 Defensive Box Plus-Minus is third in the league, only to Andrew Bogut and Rudy Gobert. But his emergence as a contributor in any form on the other side of the ball is an equally encouraging sign, indicative of a fast learning curve. Such improvements have a year of rehab and conditioning to thank, as time and gradual conditioning not only gave him time to work behind the scenes with team development coaches, but also to build up some muscle. I don’t think anyone expected him to play as many games as he has - I predicted no more than 50 - let alone a team-leading 74 of 78 games played. His talent in the open floor in transition is a testament to this conditioning, where he’s converting 63.5 percent of the time on 1.03 points per possession.

Disclaimer: 6’11 players with imposing length and speed in the open floor are terrifying. 

So, with about a week to go in the season and an important offseason ahead, Noel has his work cut out for him. His faceup game will have to take another step forward next season, as will his touch around the rim and, most importantly, his strength. But he’s already turning a corner as one of the league’s next top defensive stars, and I don’t think anyone expected this type of success in year one. At 21 years old, the groundwork is only just being laid, and time is certainly on his side.