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In the span of a calendar year Joakim Noah has gone from one of the hometown heroes returning to the Big Apple to one decision the New York Knicks and their fans wish they could take back after the Hell's Kitchen native underperformed and once again fell to injury and a suspension to boot.
The Knicks are now stuck with the four-year, $72 million contract that former president Phil Jackson got him last offseason, a contract the team has tried to shed in trade talks to no avail.
Yet despite the misery during his stint home, the 32-year-old has no regrets in coming home to play for the New York or his relationship with Jackson, who was since let go from the organization.
“It’s tough, man, because I got a lot of love and respect for Phil,’’ Noah told Marc Berman of the New York Post. “He gave me an opportunity to play back home. Somebody I read all his books as a kid. I was just a big fan and still am. I have a lot of respect for him.”
“It didn’t work out. That sucks. It’s something I have to live with. He believed in me, and I kind of let him down. That’s frustrating. He got a lot of blame that it was his fault. But we didn’t lose all those games because of Phil Jackson.’’
Noah has always been an honest self-evaluator and this isn't the exception. Once an involved scorer and aggressive offensive rebounder, Noah was often flat-footed and lacking the extra spurt of energy on defense — a skill that made him a valuable asset to the Knicks' equation coming into last October.
“I wouldn’t trade it for s**t,’’ Noah said. “I know a lot of people are mad about it, but I’m not. I don’t feel sorry for myself. Everything that happened were my decisions. I’m a grown-ass man. I’m playing in New York City. It sucked because I didn’t play well. I get to bounce back and come back next year. … I’m not going to quit.”
Yet the 6-foot-11 big man hopes he's able to redeem himself in front of the home crowd at Madison Square Garden, arena which he attended as a young kid.
“I know New York — I know if I can come back and get it right, that could be a big story, too.”
