Gone

Over the weekend, the Knicks announced that they were  releasing center Joakim Noah.  Beneficiary of a $72-million deal from now-departed Knicks’ president Phil “Has Anyone Seen My Posterior?” Jackson, Noah was such a bust over two seasons that New York is willing to eat the $37.8 million remaining on his contract.

I’m probably the only Bulls’ fan without room in his heart for Noah, a very popular ex-Bull.  Yes, he hustled and played selfless basketball here for nine seasons, and, yes, he’s given time and money to an anti-violence initiative, but for me it was all about first impressions.  In 2008, Noah’s teammates voted unanimously to double the rookie’s one-game suspension for fighting with an assistant coach.  Noah acted as if he were entitled.

And let’s not forget Noah’s 20-game suspension for failing a drug test in 2017 or how his Knicks’ career ended in February of this year by getting into a shoving match with then-coach Jeff Hornacek.  None of this makes Joakim Noah a bad person.  If anything, the incidents show Noah to be no different than anyone else.  It’s just that I like star athletes to carry themselves with a certain degree of class.  Failing that, they should at least be smart enough to know who they can get into a fight with.