Los Angeles Lakers: Free agents to replace Dwight Howard if he leaves
By Jason Reed
2. Nerlens Noel
A younger and cheaper option that is available is Nerlens Noel. Now, to be completely honest, Noel is someone who I have always been pretty high on, so there might be some bias in this inclusion. However, even if Noel is not the player that I thought he could be several years ago, he absolutely is someone who can slot into a smaller role with the Los Angeles Lakers.
Noel has already proven that he can be pretty efficent in a smaller role alongside another center on the Oklahoma City Thunder alongside Steven Adams. Noel averaged 18.5 minutes per game (very close to Howard), scoring 7.4 points with 4.9 rebounds and 1.5 blocks per game.
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Howard definitely has the rebounding advantage over Noel but if you compare their per-36 minutes averages then it is clear how close these two were in production in 2020.
Per 36 minutes, Noel averaged 14.3 points, 9.6 rebounds and 2.9 blocks; Howard averaged 14.3 points, 14 rebounds and 2.2 blocks per game.
Noel is not as solid of a rebounder but he is definitely more than capable of producing similar to what Howard has for the Lakers this season and is a better shot blocker. Plus, he would naturally benefit from playing alongside LeBron James, which every big (just look at Ivica Zubac) seemingly has.
The great thing about Noel is that he would not be an overly expensive option and could be someone who the Lakers sign for less than the mid-level exception.