Sports

Florida’s Noah brings home national title, should bring glory to an NBA team

By Ryan Clark

Posted on April 06, 2006, at 12:00 a.m.

The Boston Celtics just found another reason to lose all their games for the rest of the season.

That reason is two words – Joakim Noah.

Heading into this tournament, not too many people knew who he was. Unless you really followed Florida Gator basketball, or better yet, tennis -because of Noah’s father- there was a chance that most did not know Joakim Noah existed.

Something tells me that has changed.

Just in case you didn’t see the national title game, here’s what you missed.

Besides leading his team in points and rebounds, Noah set a tournament record for most blocks in a game. Not those blocks where he nips it with his fingers, but the ones where he palms the ball.

The kind of blocks that any team named the Celtics or Knicks could really use around this time of year.

Although Noah is a sophomore, it would be a safe bet to say that if he decided to go pro, maybe, just maybe, he would be a Top Five pick.

There are so many things that make this guy great. It’s not just his 6-foot-11 frame. It’s not just his shot blocking ability or the fact that he is a great ball handler. It’s something else.

It’s the fact that Noah understands the concept of team basketball.

Having talent is great. Talent is not enough. If it was, Paul Pierce or loud mouth Stephon Marbury would be Bill Russell. Any person who wants to become great at anything needs intelligence.

Intelligence is something Noah and his entire Gators team displayed on Monday night.

When the clock started ticking down from three minutes, Florida continuously looked to pass the ball and run out the clock. Unless there was five seconds left or a really, really good open look, they always shot.

And usually, they made their shot.

Those shots were not anything spectacular, but they were dunks or easy jumpers. What made them so great was the fact they came as a result of a team working together with intelligent players like Noah.

Whenever UCLA used a press, and Noah had the ball, can anyone think of a big man able to run the court with the ball without looking awkward?

Exactly. It’s something that doesn’t happen too often.

The last time any of us witnessed a player Noah’s size doing this well was some guy by the name of Tim Duncan.

Wasn’t Duncan projected to go to the Celtics? Didn’t he go to San Antonio and win NBA titles?

This time last year, everyone was singing Andrew Bogut’s praises for being this dominant force in the paint. Yet nobody was singing his praises for his ability to make good decisions. That is what separates one draft pick from being a flop or a franchise player.

That’s the truth.

Speaking of which, here’s a decision bad teams should have no trouble making – to keep losing to get the first pick in the draft.

Why?

Because getting a big man with great hands and a smart mind always wins games, and usually championships. And if anything, that is the real truth.

This entry was posted on Thursday, April 6th, 2006, 12:00 am. You can follow any responses to this article through the RSS feed.