How Nerlens Noel went from Knicks defensive linchpin to contract albatross

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The chances Knicks center Nerlens Noel suits up again this season are slim, according to a person familiar with the situation.

Having appeared in just 25 games, Noel is running out of time to make it back before the season finale on April 10 (which is also his 28th birthday). His extended absence is only the latest turn in a snakebitten season of epic proportions.

Noel is currently rehabbing from plantar fasciitis in his left foot, which joins a list of maladies he has faced since signing a new three-year, $31 million contract, — with the third-year a team option — last summer.