- Joakim Noah: signed a four-year, $72 million contract
The 2013-14 season was good to Joakim Noah. He won the Defensive Player of the Year Award and finished fourth in MVP voting.
To judge Noah’s value to the Bulls in his nine seasons with the team we’ll take a closer look at that impressive season.
The 31-year-old played 80 games and averaged 12.6 points, 11.3 rebounds, 5.4 assists, 1.5 blocks, and 1.2 steals. He led the team in rebounds, assists, and blocks.
With Derrick Rose out of action for all but ten games, Noah took over as the primary ball handler.
Noah’s passing skills should provide a seamless transition into the triangle offense.
Noah averaged 83.8 touches per game, including 9.7 touches from the elbow, and 4.9 from the post. This shows how versatile a passer he is, as Noah was able to pass the ball out of the post and more frequently from the elbow.
In the 2,820 minutes that Noah was on the court, the Bulls were +3.9 points per 100 possessions and slipped all the way to a -3.0 points per 100 possessions in the 1,166 without him (via NBA.com).
Noah had one of the best all-around seasons in the league, stuffing the stat sheet on a regular basis. He was fourth in the league in double doubles and second in triple doubles.
His metrics only amplified his value.
He ranked first among centers in RPM, first in DWS, and second in DBPM, and fifth in VORPM.
Noah’s greatest assets can’t be measured on the stat sheet, though. It’s his natural talent as a leader on the court and his ability to guard multiple positions.
He’s one of the few players who can guard big men in the post and switch off the pick and roll and match up with guards on the perimeter.
Look at what he does here to Dwyane Wade in the 2011 Eastern Conference Finals.
You can count on one hand the amount of centers who can do that.
But, Noah was so bad last season. It was just 29 games, and he did get moved to the bench, but man he was bad. Granted 29 games is a small sample size, but coming off shoulder surgery isn’t encouraging.
The Knicks are banking that a change of scenery and playing in the triangle will do Noah some good. Give them an A for enthusiasm.
