Joakim Noah has revealed that former Chicago Bulls teammate Derrick Rose was once mocked for a crazy prediction that came true.
Noah was drafted in 2007 and spent the following nine seasons with the Bulls, eight alongside Rose – who entered the league in 2008.
The center made two All-Star appearances (2013 and 2014) and even beat LeBron James to the Defensive Player of the Year award in 2014.
But he did not have the same impact as Rose – by far the best and most popular Bulls player since the great Michael Jordan.
Rose’s personality did not match his game. He was one of the most explosive guards in NBA history but had little to say off the court.
However, Noah recalled one occasion where he vocalised his supreme confidence, and it did not go down well with the media. Rose had the last laugh, though, as his outlandish prediction came true.
“He was somebody who really believed in his ability more than anybody,” Noah said on The Young Man and the Three.
“When I think of Derrick, I think about before he got the MVP and it’s media day and he said ‘why can’t I be MVP?’
“What I think about when I think of that moment is the laughing in the background from all the journalists.
“Nobody believed that he could be the youngest MVP ever. He called it and it just shows his belief in himself.”
Rose won the MVP in 2011 when he averaged 25 points, 4.1 rebounds and 7.7 assists per game and led the Bulls to first place in the Eastern Conference with a 62-20 record.
Rose and Noah were not only the two best players on the impressive Bulls team of the early 2010s but good friends too. Noah was asked how their close relationship started.
“I think that our relationship really grew not on the basketball court but when [Rose] got hurt,” he added.
“It was when he got a lot of attention, he had just got MVP, just signed his big Adidas deal, just signed the Bulls deal.
“After the injury, I think that was a really lonely time for him so being able to be with him during that time, that was when our relationship really grew.”
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