Noel takes Brown off hook for minutes shortage following meeting

Nerlens Noel is frustrated with his lack of playing time, but he isn't blaming Philadelphia 76ers head coach Brett Brown.

Noel vented that the Sixers needed to "figure shit out" after he only logged eight minutes in Friday's loss to the Los Angeles Lakers. Those comments promptly landed him in a meeting with Brown to discuss his situation.

Both parties admitted to the difficulties of accommodating three centers, and Noel doesn't hold it against his coach for the lack of playing time.

"He just has a lot on his plate, so no pointing fingers. It’s a situation that we’re dealt with," Noel told Jessica Camerato of CSN Philly on Saturday. "We had a conversation. He kept it more real with me, so I respect him a little more for that. You see some things with more insight and you handle it how you want to, and just handle it the right way."

As for his outburst on the previous night, Noel said it came from wanting to contribute.

"You might get emotional sometimes and I’m human and I want to play basketball at the highest level," Noel said. "Now moving forward it’s taking it day by day and keep improving."

Brown, meanwhile, exhibited patience in the face of a difficult situation that sees both Noel and star rookie Joel Embiid thoroughly unhappy with their roles.

"I think it’ll be an extreme challenge," Brown said of the three-center rotation. "I think everybody, if you went to our owners, if you went to (president of basketball operations) Bryan (Colangelo), if you went to the team, me, we appreciate it’s a challenging situation."

A resolution will most likely come from the front office moving one of their centers to achieve greater roster balance. But Brown stopped short of saying that a move was absolutely necessary or inevitable - something Noel professed before his miserable season even began.

"To tick off on untenable, to tick off on it’s impossible, I’m not going there. I think it is most definitely a challenging situation," Brown said.