Nerlens Noel has been ramping up the visibility of his work over the past few days, but he probably won't play a competitive game until the Summer League.

"I'm sorry to say the same, old answer and he's just moving forward and I can't even really give you a rate," Brett Brown said. "You see what I see. Whether he is going to play or not is still up in the air. But I think just to watch him, how can you not get excited about what we're all seeing?

"The first thing that I've fallen in love with is that he is beyond competitive. There is a dog in him, there is a toughness in him that I misjudged, because you look at him and he's got those big eyes at 19 years old and there's a naiveté that no doubt exists within him, as it should. So you're talking to him and he doesn't talk a lot, he listens a lot, he's a fantastic listener. As you go through all those months shooting one-handed with him and then all of the sudden you see him come out here, he's a tremendous competitor. For me, it's the No. 1 quality that makes somebody special. Then you get into the athleticism where he's got that bounce and he can jump twice. People that can miss a blocked shot, hit the floor and go back up are special. And he can do it both with his right hand and his left hand. I think the growth of his actual foul shot will carry over to his real shot, [which] has been excellent this year. I'm proud of the time that we've spent with him. I see a far more mature type of player having gone through all the film sessions and the weight room sessions and on a team bus. He's been with the team, he just hasn't played. This year has been invaluable to him."