Joakim Noah’s potential suitors are dwindling as a reunion with Tom Thibodeau looks unlikely. This could handcuff the New York Knicks.
Joakim Noah is the constant reminder of Phil Jackson that still clings to the New York Knicks. Kristaps Porzingis is another reminder of Jackson, but Noah is the one Knicks fans would love to forget.
According to Marc Stein of the New York Times, the Timberwolves don’t plan to pursue Noah.
Even the Wolves acknowledge hearing the "Timberbulls" chatter … but word is they have no current plans to pursue Joakim Noah should Noah part ways with the Knicks in the near future as expected https://t.co/0ZyE1xFn3M
— Marc Stein (@TheSteinLine) September 12, 2018
Tom Thibodeau has made a habit of acquiring former players he coached with the Chicago Bulls. He traded for Jimmy Butler before acquiring Taj Gibson, Derrick Rose, and most recently, Luol Deng.
If Thibodeau isn’t willing to take a chance on Noah, there probably aren’t many teams who are. This isn’t great news for the Knickerbockers. There has been zero interest in Noah around the league. No contract is ever truly untradeable, but Noah’s contract may be as close as it gets.
So this leaves the Knicks with a few options. The best of which might be to waive-and-stretch Noah’s contract so the final year and more than $19 million is spread out over three seasons. This would open up about $12.8 million in cap space for the all-important 2019 offseason.
There was heavy speculation that the Knicks would use the waive-and-stretch shortly after Sept. 1 came, but New York hasn’t done anything yet. They’re taking their time and don’t seem to be in any rush to make a move.
Scott Perry and Steve Mills have an important decision to make regarding Noah. Will they waive-and-stretch Noah before the season or hold onto him and wait for a better option in the future?
