A signing that looked suspect and an impending albatross the moment the ink dried definitely doesn’t look any better today. Yesterday the Vertical tweeted that New York Knicks center Joakim Noah will potentially miss the remainder of the 2016-17 season or at the least the next 3 to 4 weeks to undergo knee surgery.
Sources: Joakim Noah likely to undergo knee surgery, miss rest of season. @WojVerticalNBA report on @TheVertical. https://t.co/w9G0ClWjTL pic.twitter.com/JQRveXUkCR
— Ball Don’t Lie (@Balldontlie) February 27, 2017
Noah has averaged 5.0 points, 8.7 rebounds and 2.2 assists in 46 appearances for the Knicks this season. He has failed to maintain a consistent level of health or flash the rim protecting ability and energy that made him one of the most valuable centers in the NBA before dealing with a string of injuries the last few years.
Noah is in the first year of a four-year, $72 million deal that he signed with the Knicks in the off-season. The fears of his durability issues re-surfacing have come to fruition for a Knicks team that has enough issues to deal with and seems to be in a never-ending state of flux.
Joakim Noah is a smart player who plays with a great deal of heart, but at 32 with a litany of injuries he figures to be little more than a part time role player and emotional leader, which makes the $55 million salary the Knicks owe him the next three years one of the worst contracts in the NBA.
This tweet sums up the situation…
Joakim Noah’s contract: pic.twitter.com/B3QBS5Veyr
— The Knicks Wall (@TheKnicksWall) February 27, 2017
It looks like another Knicks retooling based around former star players a few years out of their prime has yielded underwhelming results again.
