Joakim Noah says he is fine with the Chicago Bulls being the underdogs next season – NBA News
Joakim Noah knows that Chicago Bulls have been looked over in the talks for next season’s title contenders, ever since point guard Derrick Rose suffered an ACL injury.
However, the French believes that come next season, he and the Bulls will be ready to rumble yet again;
"Right now, people are sleeping on us, and we're all right with that. We know at the end of the day, come playoff time, we'll be ready to go."
While making an appearance on “The Herd” on ESPN Radio, Noah said that ever since his teammate and All Star point guard Derrick Rose suffered an ACL injury during game 1 of the 1st round playoff series against the Philadelphia 76ers, commentators have expelled the Bulls from championship talks for next season.
Rose is expected to be out for 8 to 10 months, missing a chunk of next season and jeopardizing the Bulls attempt to win a championship. They have finished with the best record in the league for the past two seasons but have fallen short of the NBA Finals on both occasions.
"I haven't seen him in a couple of weeks, but I know he's working really hard at getting back as soon as possible," said Noah while referring to Rose.
The off-season has seen teams such as the Brooklyn Nets, Miami Heat and Boston Celtics strengthen their roster with the addition of key players. The Bulls, on the other hand, have had a less exciting and explosive off-season and free agency, parting ways with Ronnie Brewer, Kyle Korver, Omer Asik and C.J. Watson. These four players formed the core of the Bulls bench, which was widely hailed as one of the best in the league. The Bulls have signed Kirk Hinrich, Marco Belinelli and Vladimir Radmanovic to the team in the off-season.
Noah, who himself is recovering from an ankle injury and missed out on the opportunity of representing his home country of France in the upcoming London Olympics due to the injury, said that the Bulls have gone through a tough period and are looking forward to the next season.
"We've gone through a little bit of adversity, but I think we're a team full of fighters. That's what I love about Chicago, about the Bulls,” said Noah.
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