Noah Penda

Last updated
Noah Penda
All-Star Game LNB 2024 (885) (Noah Penda).jpg
Penda in the LNB All-Star Game in 2025
No. 93–Osceola Magic
Position Small forward / shooting guard
League NBA G League
Personal information
Born (2005-01-07) 7 January 2005 (age 20)
Paris, France
Listed height6 ft 7 in (2.01 m)
Listed weight215 lb (98 kg)
Career information
NBA draft 2025: 2nd round, 32nd overall pick
Drafted by Boston Celtics
Playing career2022–present
Career history
2022–2024 JA Vichy-Clermont
2024–2025 Le Mans Sarthe
2025–present Orlando Magic
2025–present→Osceola Magic
Career highlights
Stats at NBA.com  OOjs UI icon edit-ltr-progressive.svg
Stats at Basketball Reference   OOjs UI icon edit-ltr-progressive.svg

Noah Penda (born 7 January 2005) is a French professional basketball player for the Osceola Magic of the NBA G League, on assignment from the Orlando Magic of the National Basketball Association (NBA). He previously played for JA Vichy-Clermont.

Contents

Early life

Penda was born on 7 January 2005. [1] He was born in Paris and grew up in Bondy. [2] He played several sports when young, including football, judo, swimming and tennis, before trying out basketball. [2] He started playing basketball as a youth for the club BC Fontenay. [3] He later was a member of the clubs Villemomble and Levallois. [4] He averaged 19.5 points in 11 games for the Levallois U15 squad in the 2019–20 season before joining Centre Fédéral de Basket-ball for the following season. [5] He played 13 games for Centre in the Nationale Masculine 1, the third-tier of French basketball, during the 2020–21 season, averaging 2.9 points. [5] He remained with the team for the following season and averaged 10.6 points. [5]

Professional career

JA Vichy-Clermont

In June 2022, Penda signed a professional contract with JA Vichy-Clermont in the LNB Pro B, the second-tier of French basketball. [6] He appeared in 37 games during the 2022–23 season, averaging 3.9 points. [1] The following season, he appeared in 37 games again and average 9.5 points and 5.9 rebounds, being selected second-team All-LNB Pro B by Eurobasket.com and the league's best young player. [4] [7]

Le Mans Sarthe

Penda signed with Le Mans Sarthe Basket, in the LNB Élite, France's top-tier, in June 2024. [7] He began seeing significant playing time as a starter despite being only 19 years old in his first season with the team. [8] He was an LNB All-Star and participated in the league's Young Star Game in January, where he was named most valuable player. [9] Following his breakout year, Penda was named the LNB Pro A Best Young Player, after averaging 10.3 points, 5.3 rebounds and 2.8 assists over the season. [10] [11]

Orlando Magic

Penda was viewed as a potential prospect ahead of the 2025 NBA draft. [12] [13] The Orlando Magic traded for his draft rights from the Boston Celtics and he was selected with the 32nd pick. [14]

National team career

Penda competed for France at the 2022 FIBA Under-17 Basketball World Cup, averaging 7.5 points in six games played. [15] He later participated in the 2023 FIBA Under-19 Basketball World Cup, helping France place second. [4] He represented France at the 2024 FIBA U20 EuroBasket tournament, where he averaged 11.7 points in seven games and won the championship. [15] In the quarterfinals of the tournament, with France down by one point against Spain, he made a game-winning buzzer beater shot to win 74–72. [16]

References

  1. 1 2 "Noah Penda". RealGM.
  2. 1 2 "Au MSB, Noah Penda veut "créer un lien spécial avec le public"" [At MSB, Noah Penda wants to "create a special bond with the public"]. msb.fr (in French). 22 June 2024.
  3. ↑ "Les premières médailles de l'été" [The first medals of the summer]. basketidf.com (in French). 18 July 2022.
  4. 1 2 3 Jean, Bertrand (17 May 2024). "Basket. Élite : le MSB engage Noah Penda, le meilleur jeune de Pro B" [Basketball. Elite: MSB hires Noah Penda, the best young player in Pro B]. Ouest-France (in French).
  5. 1 2 3 "Toutes les saisons du joueur PENDA Noah" [All seasons of the player PENDA Noah]. mr-stats.frenchbasketballscouting.fr (in French).
  6. ↑ Bosi, Kévin (9 June 2022). "Noah Penda à Vichy/Clermont" [Noah Penda to Vichy/Clermont]. ancien.ffbb.com (in French).
  7. 1 2 Patel, Arpita (17 June 2024). "Noah Penda agreed terms with Le Mans". Eurobasket.com .
  8. ↑ Bernucca, Andrew (November 12, 2024). "Noah Penda Is Playing a Big Role for Le Mans". Sports Illustrated .
  9. ↑ Colombani, Xavier (21 January 2025). "Young Star Game : Noah Penda MVP devant un parterre de scouts NBA" [Young Star Game: Noah Penda MVP in front of an audience of NBA scouts]. L'Équipe (in French).
  10. ↑ "Trophées LNB 2025 : les lauréats en Betclic ELITE". Betclic ELITE (in French). 17 May 2025. Retrieved 27 May 2025.
  11. ↑ Proballers. "Noah Penda, Basketball Player, Stats, Height, Age". Proballers. Retrieved 31 May 2025.
  12. ↑ "NBA Draft Scouting Report: France's Noah Penda". Sports Illustrated . 30 October 2024.
  13. ↑ Kumpatla, Maurya (13 November 2024). "NBA Draft: Noah Penda Should be in First-Round Pick Consideration". Sports Illustrated .
  14. ↑ Savage, Dan (26 June 2025). "Orlando Magic Trade Up to Acquire Draft Rights to Noah Penda". NBA.com. Retrieved 19 July 2025.
  15. 1 2 "Noah Penda". Proballers.com.
  16. ↑ "Noah Penda envoie la France en demi-finales de l'Euro U20 après un shoot au buzzer face à l'Espagne" [Noah Penda sends France into Euro U20 semi-finals after buzzer-beating shot against Spain]. L'Équipe (in French). 18 July 2024.