Joakim Noah retires at age 36

Joakim Noah (Keith Allison, Wikimedia Commons)

Professional basketball player Joakim Noah of New York, New York has retired at the age of 36 according to Quenton Albertie of Slam. The two-time NBA All-Star center, who was the son of tennis legend Yannick Noah, played 13 seasons in the NBA with the Chicago Bulls, New York Knicks, Memphis Grizzlies, and Los Angeles Clippers from 2007 to 2020.

Noah’s time with the Clippers was a short one. He only played five games with Los Angeles in 2019-20, and averaged 2.8 points per game. Noah’s best game with the Clippers came on August 14 in the Florida bubble, as he had nine points, six rebounds, and five assists in a 107-103 Los Angeles win over the Oklahoma City Thunder.

In Noah’s career, he averaged 8.8 points per game, and 9.0 rebounds per game in 672 career games. Noah’s two best seasons were his All-Star years in Chicago of 2012-13 and 2013-14. He averaged 11.9 points per game and 11.1 rebounds per game in 2012-13, and 12.6 points per game and 11.3 rebounds per game in 2013-14. Also in the 2013-14 season, Noah became the second Bulls player in franchise history to win the NBA Defensive Player of the Year Award. The first was Michael Jordan in 1987-88.

In addition to the 2012-13 and 2013-14 seasons where Noah averaged a double-double, he also had a double-double in two other seasons with the Bulls. Noah averaged 11 rebounds per game and 10.7 points per game in 2009-10, and 11.7 points per game, and 10.4 rebounds per game in 2010-11.

Noah also had a notable collegiate career. He won back-to-back national championships with the University of Florida Gators in 2006 and 2007. He was then the ninth overall pick by the Bulls in the 2007 NBA Draft. Ironically, Noah’s coach with the Gators is current Bulls head coach Billy Donovan. 

Joakim Noah’s father Yannick is best known for being the last French man to win the men’s singles championship at the French Open. In the 1983 French Open Final, Yannick Noah defeated Mats Wilander of Sweden 6-2, 7-5, 7-6.

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