It’s always sad to watch great competitors retire without winning an NBA Championship. That’s the case with former Chicago Bulls star Joakim Noah, who recently told Shams Charania of The Athletic that he’s retiring after 13 seasons in the NBA.
13-year NBA center Joakim Noah — a two-time All-Star and former Defensive Player of the Year winner — is effectively retiring from basketball, sources tell @TheAthletic @Stadium.
Plan is for the longtime Chicago star to eventually retire as a Bull.
— Shams Charania (@ShamsCharania) March 1, 2021
Also, Shams added that his intention is to retire with the Chicago Bulls, the team he played in for the first nine seasons of his career before joining the New York Knicks, Memphis Grizzlies, and Los Angeles Clippers.
“It was time to stay true and move on,” Noah told Chris Myers of Stadium.
"It was time to be true and move on." — @JoakimNoah's body was telling him it was time to retire.
Catch the debut episode of Chris & Tell with @The_ChrisMyers on @WatchMarquee on March 25. pic.twitter.com/673x2WmKRO
— Stadium (@Stadium) March 2, 2021
Noah was one of the fiercest competitors and one of the toughest defenders in the league in his prime. He was the leader of the Chicago Bulls when Derrick Rose fell with an injury, working as the team’s primary playmaker and anchoring their defense in the paint and in the perimeter.
The French-American big man was an icon for the Windy City, especially during their battles with LeBron James and the Cleveland Cavaliers and Miami Heat.
Throughout his career, Noah averaged 8.8 points, 9.0 rebounds, 2.8 assists, and 1.3 blocks per game. He made it to 2 All-Star Games, 3 All-Defensive teams, one All-NBA team, and was named the Defensive Player of the Year in 2014.
Noah will always be remembered for his grit, hustle, unorthodox shooting form, and his comments roasting the city of Cleveland. For that and many more things, we can expect the Bulls to retire his jersey one day.
