Good morning Chicago! Fire up the coffee, read, share, comment, and then enjoy your weekend. Let’s go!
I was in Mrs. Dwyer’s AM Kindergarten class, sitting criss-crossed on the carpet, waiting for the day to begin. As the rest of the children around me kept talking, I locked in on Steven Smith’s (a classmate of mine) mother, who was approaching Mrs. Dwyer with a concerned look on her face.
Then, I was in the back of a yellow school bus after a baseball double header against Lyons Township in LaGrange, Illinois. My Dad and brother were not at the game because they were away visiting my other brother at college, but they texted me about the news. I opened my phone and yelped.
Those two experiences are two of the most vivid memories I have from 10+ years ago. And they take place about 11 years apart. One was September 11th, 2001, and the other was April 28th, 2012, when Derrick Rose tore his ACL against the 76ers in Round 1 of the NBA Playoffs.
So it’ll come as no surprise to most of you that I was completely empathetic to Joakim Noah’s semi-comparison of the two incidents on the eve of ‘Joakim Noah Night’ at the United Center.
“When I found out Derrick [Rose] tore his ACL, I remember the smells, who I was with, everything. I had the same feeling of when I saw the plane hit the tower [on Sept. 11th]. People will be like, ‘He’s crazy for saying that.’ No. I’m telling you how I felt.” — Joakim Noah on 'The Lowe Post’
It’s not a comparison of the two incidents. What it is, instead, is a comparison of his reaction to both of the incidents. It’s not minimizing 9/11, but instead proving how traumatic of a moment it was to him when Derrick Rose tore his ACL, which altered his — and the Chicago Bulls’ — future forever.
I’ve talked about Derrick Rose’s injury with an embarrassing amount of people over the years, way more than I’ve talked about 9/11 with. Almost all of them can recall exactly where they were and what they were doing when they either saw him get hurt or learned of the news.
The anecdote from Noah made sense, especially if you’ve heard him talk about that before. And Bulls fans around the city essentially reacting to it by saying, ‘Shit, I basically felt the same way’ proves what this Joakim Noah night was all about.
Noah’s desire to win and give back every ounce of his being to the city of Chicago was why we loved him so much, and why — even though the ring never came — those teams will be immortalized in Chicago history.
In fact, without the ring, the relationship even meant more. In some years, those teams had zero chance of winning a ring. Yet they played so hard, and were so tight-knit, that they gave us meaningful, inspiring basketball on a yearly basis.
I remember after Rose hurt his knee again in Portland a year and a half later, when the season looked all for naught. It was almost more devastating than the first injury. The comeback could no longer be hyped, and the Bulls window for a championship seemed to be effectively over.
(It says a lot that Derrick Rose is still playing, almost a decade later now, and contributing mightily to a team that beat the Bulls last night, by the way.)
The next game — a Sunday matinee vs. the Clippers — ended in a 40-point blow out. It was all over, I felt, the season was hopeless.
The Bulls ended up with the 28th best offense that year. And yet, they rallied back from all of that and won 48! games.
That is how I’ll remember Noah and those Bulls teams. I won’t just remember them as a What If? hypothetical. They were so much more than that, and one of the only times in my life where I felt completely connected in a personal way to one of my favorite Chicago teams.
So the fact they didn’t win a ring is a minor detail in their story. Their story is Joakim Noah’s story — one of perseverance, passion, and genuine brotherhood.
I’ll never have as much fun rooting for a team than I did those Bulls teams. I’m sure of that.
Take 2012-2013, for example, when Derrick Rose didn’t play a single game. The Bulls not only won 45 games (again as the 29th best offense), they also won a playoff series on the road. In Game 7, when Noah was battling a severe foot injury, he scored 24 points and led the team to victory in Brooklyn.
I’ll never forget the way those teams played. I’ll never forget how I felt when they went into Miami and won Game 1 just days later. They may have lost the next four (refs were fucking awful), but it wasn’t really about that.
There were seven guys in the goddamn rotation, all playing 45 minutes per night. They were so proud to be playing for Tom Thibodeau and for Chicago. And damn I was proud to root for them.
In Joakim Noah’s interviews this past week, you’ll notice he never talked about his own achievements. The two things that kept coming back up were the fans in the upper level, going nuts night in, night out, and his teammates. His favorite memories all have to do with other people.
It’s the same reason why, when he was being considered for MVP one of those years (coming in 4th), he said that there was only one MVP on the team, and that guy wasn’t playing.
You couldn’t build a more ideal player to root for in a lab. He was the guy who kept the city on his shoulders when Derrick’s knees collapsed, the guy that would stand up to LeBron, the guy who only cared about the team he played for and winning.
I love the NBA more than anyone, but Noah does feel like a near-extinct species. They just don’t make them like that anymore.
It’s true with all the teams you love: a lot of it is just you remembering what life was like when you rooted for that team, right? A lot of us were younger and in a place where the Bulls schedule was one of the three most important things on our mind.
Surely, I miss that.
But I do think that team, and Noah, brought the generations together in Chicago. How could you not root for a team with all of your soul that couldn’t score a basket seamlessly, but still had one of the best records in the Eastern Conference?
I started writing a column about Noah last night, and including some of my favorite memories of him. But in the end, I realized there were too many. I started thinking of random games that I remembered as well as the Derrick Rose-ACL game.
I realized along the way that those memories are the collective gift Noah left us with. A celebration of them all is better than a separation and celebration of a few of them.
Noah, Kirk Hinrich, Luol Deng, and Derrick Rose.
That’s the Mount Rushmore of Bulls players since the turn of the century. Those guys were proud to wear the jersey, and they also accomplished much more than you think.
The best organization in basketball had turned into the worst in a hurry. They were tasked with turning that around. And they did, against a lot of odds and a lot of adversity.
For that reason, I really do think all four of them should have their numbers retired. At the very least, Noah and Rose should.
Retiring Noah’s number would show what we as fans value: sure it’s the wins, but more than that, it’s just busting your ass every night for the city.
That’s what Noah did, and why he’s one of the my favorite athletes of all time.
“I love him… and he’s a dear friend.” — Tom Thibodeau
Thursday night was the least we could do for him to pay his efforts back, but I’m hoping the rest of the 2021-2022 Bulls saw how hard this city is capable of loving you — if you put in the effort and the time.
JOAKIM NOAH — STILL GOTTA COME THROUGH CHICAGO!
(Photo: Chris Elise / NBAE via Getty Images)
I love Tom Thibodeau so god damn much that it’s hard to even root against his interests. Watching his defense do to the Bulls what the Bulls’ defense did under him for so many years has got to make you crack a smile.
When Thibs comes to a new team he sees them like People Magazine sees Blake Shelton.
Others see a misfit group of players and no real stars, he sees a top-4 team in the East and the best defense in the NBA, just like others see a regular looking, kinda doughy, middle-aged white guy, while People sees Shelton as the sexiest man alive.
To each their own.
The Bulls showed more in tonight’s loss than they’ve shown us all season. They played a tough, good team, and their weaknesses were apparent. Despite that, they fought back from 13 down with two minutes left and almost won the game at the buzzer.
And here’s the perspective to keep: At the end of a basketball game in October, 20,000 fans were on their feet in the final seconds cheering on the Bulls. Better days aren’t just ahead, they’re also here.
It’s pretty fitting that the United Center felt like the United Center I know for the first time since Noah was wearing a Bulls jersey.
It was also fitting that the Bulls, who have had no player like Noah since him, were out-rebounded all night, both on the offensive and defensive glass.
Thibodeau’s teams always have an identity. That alone gives them a leg up on almost every opponent they play, because in this day and age, very few teams have an identity at all, especially not one that carries over from year to year.
That was evident against a Bulls team that — we must remember — has been playing together for a month.
Over time, DeRozan and LaVine will find a way to make plays like the last one work. Billy Donovan drew up a great play, and DeRozan probably should have even gone harder off a fake handoff to the basket or just given the ball to LaVine. Either way, they got a good look to win the game and just missed it.
The Bulls are currently the worst rebounding team in the NBA. We all saw this coming, and it’s why Tony Bradley will likely need more minutes going forward, seeing as though he’s the only other guy that’s 6’10 or above on the team other than Nikola Vucevic.
Here was my seventh and final note on the Bulls on the eve of the season:
Turnovers and rebounds. The Bulls biggest weakness last year was their turnovers. Having better players, again, will naturally help this issue. Rebounds is a separate issue, one I’m more worried about. While Vuc is a good rebounder, he’s going to need some help. Alize Johnson, who the Bulls just signed, could give them good, small-ball center minutes, but he’s just 6’7. Tony Bradley, the back-up center, will help. But he’s also got a small frame. When the Bulls play bigger teams, they may have some trouble. This is where I see the Bulls improving their roster mid-season. There’s always a big man on the market for cheap, either through trades or buyouts. If the Bulls are playing well by that point, I have no doubt they’ll go get a bruiser to put a bow on this roster.
The turnovers have decreased by almost two per game, taking them from one of the worst teams in the league in the category to one of the 10 best — for now. The rebounding, on the other hand, is an issue.
And it will be an issue against the best teams in the Eastern Conference, who have much more size than the Bulls currently do.
Another move to bolster the front court is a must, but until then, the Bulls will be heavily relying on Vucevic, and also everyone else around him, to put rebounding on the top of their priority lists.
Patrick Williams finally seemed to find his stride before promptly hurting his wrist on a dunk attempt where he was clobbered in the face mid-air. Having Ayo Dosunmu in there in the fourth quarter instead of Williams hurt them badly.
I had a few other quibbles with how the Bulls played, including how DeRozan and LaVine handled themselves on offense. LaVine was rightfully angry about a few foul calls but then, as he’s wont to do, started trying to force the issue too much. DeRozan and LaVine were not going to beat this defense on their own — that was Thibs’ design. So when they had the ball against mismatches, without a double, they should have been creating on their own, and not calling for screens. Those screens invited either doubles or a better defender to switch onto them.
A lot of this stuff, however — sans the rebounding — will be ironed out with time.
As will the bench scoring and lack of shooting on the back half of the roster. Imagine putting Coby White and his explosive offense in there for 28 minutes last night?
The defense was great again. Lonzo Ball, who was giving up inches and dozens of pounds to Julius Randle, dominated him for the entire second half. Alex Caruso was incredible defensively as well. Those two have been even more than advertised on that end, and you can clearly see the vision that AK had when he got them (and when he got DeRozan, but for opposite reasons).
(DeRozan had some really bad moments defensively tonight, which led to some wide open three pointers for Evan Fournier and others.)
The Bulls next twelve games are an absolute gauntlet. They also play the Knicks again on the back-end of this stretch. I honestly can’t remember seeing this tough of a go at it for any team in a single season, for this long of a stretch.
We will learn a lot about the Bulls during these games, of course. But just like it was important to not get too high on the Bulls after 4-0, it’s equally as important to not get too low on them during this series of games.
If the Bulls went 5-7 over the next 12, putting them at 9-8, I’d be ecstatic. Anything better than that would be gravy. That won’t make them a bad team, either.
Hell, the Nets and the Lakers — the two championship favorites — are below .500 right now.
But, have you noticed the overarching point during this entire breakdown?
Guys, we’re discussing the Bulls upcoming schedule and minor offensive errors that they’re making. Look how far we’ve come.
As the Bears continue to fade into irrelevance, hellbent on making us depressed along with the gray winter skies, the Bulls are here to give us the dopamine shot we all need — the one we’ve been longing for since Joakim Noah left the Bulls.
I’m talking going to games, heading to bars for the game, discussing your issues with substitution patterns in detail, 10 beers deep. It’s all here, it’s all back.
For all of you that have been along for the ride with the OVER bets, thanks for sticking around. For those of you who want back on the wagon, it’s free admission, and it’s all you can drink on here. Let’s have some fun.
LETS GO BULLS! #LOCKIN.
Much like the Chicago Bulls teams of the last decade, the Blackhawks were the subject of many memories made for Chicagoans.
And before I get into what has transpired, I want to say this to everyone that’s been as distraught over this as I have been: your memories are still yours, no matter who is culpable in all of this awful shit. For anyone telling you that you can’t still enjoy those cups, they’re making the mistake of conflating the way those Cups made you feel with how you feel about each individual in the organization.
But for an organization that was held in the highest regard for so many years, the fall from grace has been both swift and deserved.
We thought the Blackhawks had hit rock bottom when they recently set an NHL record for the longest stretch of gameplay without a lead, but they fell into an abyss Wednesday when a law firm released a 107-page investigation detailing a sexual abuse that took place in May of 2010, and its subsequent handling.
The story is just being unearthed, over ten years later, but its narrative follows the path of many stories we’ve heard in the past few years — both in the sports world and elsewhere.
A sexual assault occurs, a cover-up ensues, a life is all but ruined, and apologies come only when the lies come to the surface.
Even in an era now where sexual assault has finally been given the credence it long deserved, leaders remain more determined to save the status quo than seek justice, and then, even as things turn, they still remain more determined to cover their own asses than do the right thing.
John Doe — now known as Kyle Beach, after a heartbreaking testimony this week — was not only sexually abused Brad Aldrich, the team’s video coach, but also had his career and his livelihood threatened if he dare tell.
"I know I'm not the only one," Beach said. "Male or female. And I buried this for 10 years. 11 years. And it's destroyed me. From the inside out. And I want everyone in the sports world, and the world, that you're not alone."
Jim Gary, the mental skills coach and counselor, was told of the incident by Beach and his response was allegedly to tell Beach it was his fault. Though the incident made its way up the chain of command, all the way up to then-President John McDonough, Aldrich remained with the team through their Stanley Cup run, and only then was given the option to resign — along with his remaining salary and a hefty playoff bonus.
Between Gary’s response, the lack of action from the Blackhawks top-down, and the image of Aldrich parading around after the Stanley Cup win, Beach (20 years old then) began to think the incident was his fault.
It’s hard to put into words how much of an organizational failure that is, both operationally and morally. It put future victims in danger, and it put a battle on Beach’s plate that he likely will never fully get over.
Beyond the sickness of the whole situation, it’s also been disappointing. Even Jonathan Toews, the face on the banner above, mostly because of the pedestal we’ve put him on, couldn’t even extend an apology to Beach for how things went down on Thursday. Instead, he spoke about how it was sad to see a man go, in Bowman, that probably should have been on the way out anyway.
The bottom line is that we will never know how culpable everyone in this situation was. The most clear offenders are, obviously, Aldrich himself, Gary, and the decision makers like McDonough who let this get to the point where it is now.
No matter how important the next game was, this should have been dealt with immediately, ten years ago. And yet still people are unable to extend the grace to Beach that he deserves.
Coach Quennville has resigned, Bowman is gone, and so are others that were involved. But that means almost nothing now. It’ll be up to every Blackhawk fan to process this in their own way, and in no way should you feel ashamed to have rooted for teams in the moment who had skeletons in their closet that you were unaware of.
Perhaps some will get shafted in this process by association, and that sucks. And we, from the outside, won’t truly know who those people are. All we have is this report, which implicates a lot of former Blackhawks employees.
But the point is, the one person who was truly wronged was cast aside in an effort to continue to lift those other people us. And that’s indefensible.
Thank you for reading Still Gotta Come Through Chicago.
I had to complete a Bio for something 10 years ago and it asked who my favorite pro athlete was. I answered Joakim Noah and people, not Bulls fans or not Chicago fans, continually asked why? I told them he was the perfect representation of the City of Chicago.
Black Hawks on the other hand are a perfect example of how people in power are so frequently cowards to cover their own ass.
Given the state of the Bears, I am so grateful for this Bulls team.
A win last night would have been awesome, but it was a hell of a fight. Watching Lonzo and Caruso together on defense is such a treat. Definitely need some interior help, and would be interested to see what veterans are floating around near the trade deadline, not that we have a lot of capital to spare.
Was getting flashbacks reading your opening about the Bulls and Noah. This current team could win three straight rings and I don't think I could love them as much as that team.