Could the Chicago Bulls actually be open to dealing All-Star center Joakim Noah? And would they really be willing to ship him to the New York Knicks and Phil Jackson?
With the Bulls offense clearly in need of major upgrades based on their first-round flameout against the Washington Wizards, Fansided.com is reporting there are rumblings in league circles of a potential Noah for Tyson Chandler, Iman Shumpert, and Pablo Prigioni deal, all of which would set the table for the Bulls to be able to earnestly chase Timberwolves’ star forward Kevin Love in 2015 free agency.
The website adds any likelihood of such a deal actually taking place also seems predicated on the Bulls missing out on high-scoring free-agent forward Carmelo Anthony this summer. The 29-year-old Anthony, second in the league in scoring to OKC’s Kevin Durant at 27.4 points per game, is widely expected to choose between the Bulls and the Knicks as to where he wants to spend at least the next four years of his career.
The 29-year-old Noah also reaffirmed his mettle this season, leading the Bulls to a 48-34 regular season mark and the Eastern Conference’s No. 4 seed, even though the Bulls lost Derrick Rose to a season-ending knee injury just 10 games into the season and dealt forward Luol Deng to Cleveland at the trade deadline.
Overall, the six-year veteran averaged 12.6 points, 11.3 rebounds, 5.4 assists, and 1.5 blocks. A back-to-back All-Star Game selection, Noah’s four triple-doubles this season were also second in the league to Indiana’s Lance Stephenson and his 120 assists during the month of March were the most by an NBA center since Wilt Chamberlain registered 155 in March of 1968.
Noah was also tabbed as this year’s NBA Defensive Player of the Year, marking the first time a Bulls player has earned the award since Michael Jordan in 1997-98.
