A longtime fan favorite should be back with the Chicago Bulls somehow, some way.
By now, most have probably heard about former Chicago Bulls center and 13-year NBA veteran Joakim Noah being released from the Los Angeles Clippers. His plan, going forward, is likely headed towards retirement.
After being drafted 9th overall back in 2007, Noah spent a total of nine seasons with the Bulls before spending short stints with the New York Knicks, Memphis Grizzlies and most recently, the Clippers.
In a year where the Bulls have undergone tons of change within leadership, it would be a pleasant sight to see Noah brought back to Chicago for one or two purposes.
First of all, Noah should undoubtedly retire as a Bull. Signing him to a 1-day contract so that he could retire in Chicago is an absolute must.
Secondly, Noah may end up being a great candidate to be an assistant in some fashion. As stated, the Bulls brought in new leadership up above with Arturas Karnisovas and Marc Eversley, but most importantly, they hired Billy Donovan to be their head coach.
Noah played under Donovan back at the University of Florida before the coach made his jump to the pros. Now would be the perfect time to come back to Chicago, under Donovan, to help in whatever way they see fit.
Chicago is hoping to get a breakout from their young center Wendell Carter Jr., another former lottery pick, and Noah could be a strong mentor for him. Like Noah, Carter is a fairly well-rounded center. But, unlike Noah, Carter still has a little ways to go defensively.
That defensive tenacity is something the Bulls are likely going to focus more on after struggling on that side of the ball, and Carter should play a big part of that. Having Noah back in Chicago to potentially help push Carter in practice and coach him along could help his development in a big way.
In his nine seasons with the Bulls, Noah was a 2-time All Star and the 2013-2014 NBA Defensive Player of the Year. To this day, he remains one of the more underrated big men to ever play the game — two All Star appearances seems a bit on the light side for a guy like Noah.
Not only a great defensive player, Noah developed a nice mid-range jump shot over his time in Chicago while also proving to be one of the better passing big men in the league. In addition to averaging a career double-double, Noah’s averaged 3.7 assists per game in 13 seasons.
He may be leaning towards retirement, but having Noah back in Chicago in a year like this would mean everything to fans. It’s time for the coaching staff and organization to do the right thing and bring him back on a 1-day contract, and if we’re lucky, as a contributor to the staff as well.