Joakim Noah: Knee To Be an Issue All Year?
By Evan Massey
The Chicago Bulls are hoping to be a title contending team this season now that Derrick Rose is back to full health, but now there are health concerns surrounding another one of their stars. Joakim Noah has been dealing with some knee issues this offseason, and they appear to still be bothering him with the regular season about to open up. According to a report from the Sun Times, Noah will be dealing with his knee issue all season long.
“Jo’s [left] knee is going to be an issue all season. He has played through pain before with the plantar [fasciitis], but this is completely different, a different level.’’
Noah was the main player that powered the Bulls to the playoffs despite losing Rose for the entire season once again. He was also named the NBA’s Defensive Player of the Year, and losing that type of production would be a major loss for Chicago.
Last season with the Bulls, Noah ended up playing in and starting 80 regular season games. He averaged 12.6 points, 11.3 rebounds, 1.5 blocks, and an impressive 5.4 assists per game. The Bulls have always demanded that their big men be able to pass well, and that is exactly what Noah did for his team last year.
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This past offseason, the Bulls might have foreseen some healthy issues for Noah, as they went out and aggressively pursued free agent big man Pau Gasol. When they signed him, it caused a lot of confusion due to how much improvement that Taj Gibson had shown last year. Perhaps the signing was made due to the Bulls knowing that they would have to give Noah quite a bit of time off throughout the year.
Needless to say, this is still very concerning news for the Bulls as they look to compete with the Cleveland Cavaliers in the Eastern Conference. Noah is a major key to what they like to do, and their defense and rebounding would take a major hit without him playing at 100 percent. Hopefully he’s able to recover to the point where it doesn’t bother him this year, and he can focus on playing the energetic and hard working type of basketball that he always has.