Noah Penda
French basketball player (born 2005)
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Noah Penda (born 7 January 2005) is a French professional basketball player for the Orlando Magic of the National Basketball Association (NBA). He previously played for JA Vichy-Clermont.
_(Noah_Penda).jpg)
Penda in the LNB All-Star Game in 2025 | |
| No. 93 – Orlando Magic | |
|---|---|
| Position | Small forward / shooting guard |
| League | NBA |
| Personal information | |
| Born | 7 January 2005 Paris, France |
| Listed height | 6 ft 7 in (2.01 m) |
| Listed weight | 215 lb (98 kg) |
| Career information | |
| NBA draft | 2025: 2nd round, 32nd overall pick |
| Drafted by | Boston Celtics |
| Playing career | 2022–present |
| Career history | |
| 2022–2024 | JA Vichy-Clermont |
| 2024–2025 | Le Mans Sarthe |
| 2025–present | Orlando Magic |
| 2025–2026 | →Osceola Magic |
| Career highlights | |
| |
| Stats at NBA.com | |
| Stats at Basketball Reference | |
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]
Career statistics
| GP | Games played | GS | Games started | MPG | Minutes per game |
| FG% | Field goal percentage | 3P% | 3-point field goal percentage | FT% | Free throw percentage |
| RPG | Rebounds per game | APG | Assists per game | SPG | Steals per game |
| BPG | Blocks per game | PPG | Points per game | Bold | Career high |