if the Chicago Bulls really want to hold internal, high-level discussions about the possibility of trading Joakim Noah, they might want to work from a list of possible acquisitions that looks something like this:
1. Dwight Howard
2. LeBron James
3. Kevin Durant
4. Dwyane Wade
5. Kobe Bryant
6. Dirk Nowitzki
7. Andrew Bogut
8. Brook Lopez?
9. Uh, we're thinking...
The list, depending on your perspective of the Bulls' needs and Noah's value, might be toyed with some, adding or dropping a few names near the top. But the point is, Carmelo Anthony isn't on my list of players for whom the Bulls should swap out Noah. And fortunately for the Bulls and their fans, he does not seem to be on the Chicago front office's list, either.
Anthony -- the Denver Nuggets' forward who seems more like a citizen of the league these days, given all his alleged, eventual destinations -- is a terrific talent. He's a Top 10 player, arguably higher than that, and he has legions of admirers for his silky smooth moves, his ability to pile up points, his knack for hitting clutch shots, his open personality and other assorted attributes.
Yet while many of those would make Chicago a different team, they wouldn't necessarily make it a better team. Not if Noah were subtracted in the process, as was rumored to be in play late last week.
Look, can we officially declare the Summer of the Superstars to be over? Because we're hurtling toward the autumnal equinox, or it toward us, this summer of biggest-name, biggest-money free agents is winding down next week, regardless. But basketball isn't always about stars, which is more than a marketing slogan under review by the NBA's 29 northernmost franchises. It is also about defense, rebounding, matchups, teamwork and passion, all of which Noah gives the Bulls.
Some of which would be gone if they traded away the 6-foot-11, pony-tailed extrovert. None of which would be guaranteed to return if Anthony were on the other side of the trading scale.
Dropping Anthony into a Bulls core of Derrick Rose and Carlos Boozer, with Kyle Korver, Ronnie Brewer and the other role players, would not necessarily make the Bulls better, not if the middle were left to Kurt Thomas, Omer Asik and some journeyman to be scrounged later. Not if Luol Deng and Taj Gibson, as the rumor had it, were included in the deal or some other. (Deng would be redundant with Anthony and his salary would be needed for matching purposes, while Gibson is coveted by numerous teams.)
Not if Boozer suddenly seemed much smaller, playing in the paint without the helping, shot-challenging, carom-snagging Noah at his side. Not if Rose, out of deference, had to relinquish the ball to 'Melo -- and retard his own offensive development -- in the same ways that worried some Bulls followers about adding even James or Wade.
Noah's absence would be greater than Anthony's presence, a bit of serious subtraction by addition. Noah's 10.7 points, 11 rebounds and 1.6 blocks in just 30.1 minutes per game weren't any sort of breakthrough in 2009-10. Adjusted for playing time, he's been close to that production since his arrival as the ninth pick in the 2007 Draft. But his role within the team as the anchor of Chicago's defense, his competitiveness and his self-awareness as an integral part of what the Bulls hope to accomplish all took quantam leaps last season.
Still a free spirit, Noah has a growing sense of purpose and responsibility in his team's locker room. He has the potential to develop into the NBA's second-best center behind Howard -- depending on Andrew Bynum's continued growing pains -- without losing the role-player instincts that have made him valuable.
It's no coincidence that Noah, for the past two years, has been at his best in the playoffs. That steal-romp-and-slam downcourt against Boston in 2009? His 25 points and 13 boards in Game 2 against the Cavaliers in April, after angering Cleveland fans with a throwaway remark? That's as close as Noah has gotten to his heady days at Florida and the Gators' NCAA titles in 2006 and 2007.
His nurturing led to the NBA's most pugnacious moment between a pair of aging backcourt players turned management, when Bulls vice president of basketball operations John Paxson got steamed at former coach Vinny Del Negro's apparent overuse of a foot-rehabbing Noah. And even James found time, on the night of his ill-conceived "Decision" in July, to sing Noah's praises (while bonding, perhaps, as another Cleveland villain). "Joakim Noah is one of those players you can't substitute for," James said that night, which might have been how Del Negro got in trouble.
James spoke about how his newly embraced and configured Miami Heat team might "see them down the line." It makes sense -- Chicago already is a pretty nice counter to Miami, strong where the Heat is not. James, Wade and Chris Bosh win the matchups at small forward, shooting guard and power forward, but the Bulls have clear advantages at point guard (Rose) and at center. Drop Noah, add Anthony and Miami still has the edge where it did, likely taking the center spot as well.
Still not swayed? Still blinking into the wattage of star power? Time to go out on a limb here: Joakim Noah will win an NBA championship before Carmelo Anthony does, regardless of current or future whereabouts. Noah brings more of the things that become so important in May and June, things that title teams simply must have and things that, in that context, are harder to come by.
Each man has a decade or more to prove me wrong. But right now, with the Bulls apparently climbing out there with me, it feels like an awfully solid limb.
posted by
No comments:
Post a Comment