Report: Thunder agree to two-year deal with Nerlens Noel

Russell Westbrook appears to have another target for alley-oop passes.

Yahoo Sports' Shams Charania reported Monday that the Oklahoma City Thunder will sign free agent center Nerlens Noel to a two-year contract with a player option in the second year.

The Thunder, Los Angeles Lakers and Washington Wizards were considered Noel's top choices, per Charania, and when the Lakers agreed to terms with JaVale McGee on Sunday, Noel was down to two options.

The New Orleans Hornets drafted Noel No. 6 overall in the 2016 NBA Draft, but traded him to Philadelphia on draft night. He then missed his first season while recovering from a torn ACL suffered in college while at Kentucky.

• READ: Will Cleveland Cavaliers retool or rebuild?

He was traded to Dallas after two-plus seasons with the 76ers, then re-signed with the Mavericks as a restricted free agent last summer.

In five seasons, Noel has averaged 9.3 points, 7.2 rebounds and 1.4 blocks in 223 games (158 starts). He played in just 30 games (six starts) last season, averaging 4.4 points and 5.6 rebounds, missing significant time because of a torn ligament in his left thumb that required surgery in early December.

The 6-foot-11, 228-pound Noel is still only 24 years old.

The move comes less than 48 hours after Paul George announced he was staying in Oklahoma City and agreeing to a four-year contract after coming over to the Thunder in a trade last summer.

For more sports coverage, visit the ABS-CBN Sports website.