No. 8 – Joakim Noah
Joakim Noah isn’t a Chicago Bull. That still hasn’t completely sunk in for a lot of Bulls fans. Each day it becomes a little more real as more stories come out about the things that Noah says and does, as a Knick. This is the reality we all now share, a reality of a Noah-less Chicago.
All U Can Heat
Bulls fans still love Noah. They will continue to love him until the first time he incites a Rajon Rondo technical foul call from the bench. Before he eagerly goads Bobby Portis isn’t losing his cool. Before he does all the things that Noah does, now to Chicago instead of for them.
I don’t choose to think of Noah that way. I choose not to remember Noah as the guy who spent the end of his tenure with the Bulls on the bench in a suit looking bored out of his mind, mentally checking off the days until he could bolt in free agency. I choose to remember the young, brash Noah. I choose to remember a Noah that had not yet perfected the tight man bun.
I choose to remember the Noah that could get out in transition, run the floor and finish a contact dunk for the and-one opportunity. Talk about a rare sight. There will probably never be a time where we see Noah lead a fast break and beat every other player down the floor to finish a dunk. This is a definitive Bulls dunk. It was the mettle of a young Bulls team, fighting with confidence and fire to establish themselves as a true contender in the Eastern Conference.
Next: No. 7 All-Time Bulls Dunk