Early life

Noah was born in New York City, New York, to Cameroonian−French singer and former world No. 3 tennis player Yannick Noah, winner of the French Open in 1983, and Cécilia Rodhe, Miss Sweden 1978. His grandfather Zacharie Noah was a Cameroonian professional soccer player, winner of the Coupe de France in 1961. Noah lived in Paris, France from 1988 to 1998 and returned to New York City at age 13.

He played high school basketball for the United Nations International School, Poly Prep Country Day School and Lawrenceville School.

Considered a four-star recruit by Rivals.com, Noah was listed as the No. 19 power forward and the No. 75 player in the nation in 2004.

College career

Noah accepted an athletic scholarship to attend the University of Florida, where he played for coach Billy Donovan's Florida Gators men's basketball team from 2004 to 2007. Noah was a member of Donovan's 2004 recruiting class, a group that included four freshmen who would have a dramatic impact on the Gators basketball program during the next three seasons. During his 2004-05 freshman year, he played 9.4 minutes per game, and averaged only 3.5 points and 2.5 rebounds per game.

During Noah's 2005-06 sophomore year, he was listed as power forward but was moved to center to replace Al Horford, and in that position he led his team in points (14.2 ppg) and blocks (2.4 bpg), while ranking second in rebounds (7.1 rpg) behind teammate Al Horford (7.6 rpg). Almost unknown at the beginning of the season, Noah's projected draft position improved over time. By the end of the NCAA Men's Division I Basketball Championship, he had declared for the 2006 NBA draft. However, Noah, along with teammates Al Horford and Corey Brewer, announced at the Gators' national championship celebration that they would return for their junior seasons. Noah and the Florida Gators would go on to repeat as 2006-07 national champions.

Noah was named the Most Outstanding Player (MOP) of the NCAA Tournament's Minneapolis Regional after leading the Gators over top-seeded Villanova in the final game with 26 points, 15 rebounds, and 5 blocks. On April 3, 2006, 2006 NCAA Men's Division I Basketball Championship Game Noah paced the Gators to a 73-57 victory over the UCLA Bruins for the school's first NCAA basketball championship, and was named the Most Outstanding Player of the Final Four. In the final game, he scored 16 points, made 9 rebounds, and blocked a championship game record 6 shots.

The next year after the Gators won the 2006 NCAA Men's Division I Basketball Tournament, they went forward to the next year with five returning starters. Noah started off the tournament with 17 points and 12 rebounds in 24 minutes of play in a win vs. the Jackson State Tigers. In the second round, Noah scored nine points and had nine rebounds in a win vs. the Purdue Boilermakers. The Purdue game, Butler Bulldogs game, and Ohio State championship game were the only three games he did not have double digit rebounds in the tournament; although he had nine rebounds in two of those games. He had a tournament high, 14 points and 14 rebounds in the Elite Eight in a win vs. the Oregon Ducks. In the championship game vs. the Ohio State Buckeyes, he was in a match-up against the future 2007 NBA Draft number one pick, Greg Oden. Regardless, he was still able to score eight points and grab three rebounds, although getting into foul trouble. He also was perfect from the free throw line, making six shots on six attempts. With the help of Noah on both the offensive and defensive sides of the ball, the Florida Gators were able to win their second NCAA Men's Division I Basketball Championship in two years.

Professional career

Early years

The Chicago Bulls selected Noah as the ninth overall pick in the 2007 NBA draft. Noah and his teammates at Florida, Corey Brewer and Al Horford, became the highest-picked trio from the same college in the history of the NBA. Horford was chosen third overall by the Atlanta Hawks, and Brewer was chosen seventh overall by the Minnesota Timberwolves. On November 6, 2007, Noah made his regular season debut off the bench after missing the first three games with a sprained ankle. He scored 2 points and had 4 rebounds. Noah had a rocky start with his team after being given a suspension by a unanimous vote from his teammates in January 2008.

Noah averaged 6.7 points and 7.6 rebounds per game during the 2008-09 regular season. Noah played a key role in Game 6 of the 2009 Eastern Conference first round playoff series between the Bulls and the Boston Celtics. In the final minute of the game's third overtime period, with the score tied at 123-123, he stole the ball from Paul Pierce and dribbled down the court (unusual for a center) for a dunk, drawing Pierce's sixth foul in the process. The Bulls went on to win the game 128-127, though they would lose the series in Game 7.

2009-10 season

During the 2009-10 season, Noah averaged 10.7 points and 11.0 rebounds per game. He only played 64 games due to injury, though. The Bulls once again made the playoffs, securing the 8th seed in the Eastern Conference. In the playoffs, Noah averaged 14.8 points per game and 13.0 rebounds, but the Bulls lost to the Cleveland Cavaliers in the first round in five games.

2010-11 season

On October 4, 2010, Noah signed a five-year, $60 million contract extension with the Bulls. On December 15, 2010, the Bulls announced that due to ligament damage in Noah's hand, he would have surgery and miss 8 to 10 weeks. Noah was averaging 14 points and 11.7 rebounds in the 24 games prior to his injury. He returned to action in the 55th game of the season on February 23 after recuperating from right thumb surgery. He scored 7 points and had 16 rebounds in just over 24 minutes. He returned to the inactive list for games 74, 75 and 76.

2011-12 season

On February 22, 2012, Noah recorded his first career triple-double with 13 points, 13 rebounds, and 10 assists in a game against the Milwaukee Bucks. It was the first triple-double by a Bulls center since Artis Gilmore recorded one in 1977.

2012-13 season

On December 7, 2012, Noah recorded his career highs of 30 points and 23 rebounds in a win against the Detroit Pistons. On December 18, 2012, he recorded his second ever triple-double, scoring 11 points, grabbing 13 rebounds and providing a career high-tying 10 assists, in a 100-89 victory over the Boston Celtics. On January 24, 2013, Noah was named as a reserve in the 2013 NBA All-Star Game, representing the Chicago Bulls alongside teammate Luol Deng. He became the Bulls' first All-Star center since Artis Gilmore in 1982. He played 16 minutes in the game, scoring 8 points and collecting 10 rebounds in the East's loss. On February 28, 2013, Noah recorded his third career triple-double, scoring 23 points, collecting 21 rebounds and blocking a career-high 11 shots in Chicago's 93-82 victory over the Philadelphia 76ers. In doing so, Noah both tied a franchise record for blocks in a regular season game set by Artis Gilmore on December 20, 1977, and joined Hakeem Olajuwon, Kareem Abdul-Jabbar, Shawn Bradley, Shaquille O'Neal, and Elvin Hayes as the only players to record a triple-double of 20-20-10 in points, rebounds, and blocks since blocks began being recorded, and the only player among them to do so while shooting 65 percent from the field.

2013-14 season

From December 28, 2013 to February 1, 2014, Noah had an 18-game streak of 10 or more rebounds, averaging 13.9 rebounds during that stretch. Such streak was ended on February 4, 2014 in a game against the Sacramento Kings as Joakim was ejected from the game after complaining due to a controversial foul call against him. Noah erupted and verbally abused the referees, resulting in a $15,000 fine from the NBA. On January 30, 2014, Joakim Noah was named a reserve in the 2014 NBA All-Star Game for the second time in his career. He played 21 minutes in the game (including the entire fourth quarter) and scored 8 points, collected 5 rebounds and had 5 assists while helping the East to win 163-155. On February 11, 2014, Noah recorded his fourth career triple-double in a 100-85 win against the Atlanta Hawks, finishing the game with 19 points, 16 rebounds and 11 assists. On February 19, 2014, Joakim accounted for 13 assists in a 94-92 road win against the Toronto Raptors. By doing so, he became the first NBA center with 3 games of 10+ assists in a season since Brad Miller of the Sacramento Kings in 2005-06 and the only center with 13 assists in a game since Vlade Divac in April 1996.

On March 2, 2014, Noah recorded his fifth career triple double with 13 points, 12 rebounds and 14 assists in a 109-90 win over the New York Knicks. Noah's 14 assists was the most ever by a Bulls center, and the most by a center in the NBA since 1986. Three days later, in a 105-94 win over the Detroit Pistons, Noah recorded yet another triple double finishing the game with 10 points, 11 rebounds and 11 assists. Joakim finished the month of March with 120 assists, the most by an NBA center since Wilt Chamberlain had 155 in March 1968. On April 9, 2014, Noah had 15 points, 13 rebounds and 10 assists in a 102-87 road win against the Minnesota Timberwolves, his fourth triple double in the season. On April 21, 2014, Noah was awarded the NBA Defensive Player of the Year award for the first time in his career. He is the second Chicago Bull to win the award, after Michael Jordan who won it in the 1987-88 season.

On June 4, 2014, Noah was named to the 2014 All-NBA first team.

2014-15 season

On January 27, 2015, Noah had a season-best game with 18 points and 15 rebounds in a 113-111 overtime win over the Golden State Warriors. He finished the season averaging 7.2 points and 9.6 rebounds, his lowest averages since the 2009-10 season.

2015-16 season

Noah lost his starting spot to Nikola Mirotić during the 2015 pre-season, coming off the bench in his first 23 games of the 2015-16 season. Following a quadruple overtime loss to the Detroit Pistons on December 18, starting center Pau Gasol did not travel to New York for the Bulls' December 19 game against the Knicks. In his absence, Noah started in his first game of the season and subsequently scored a season-high 21 points. He also grabbed 10 rebounds in the game, six of them offensive, thus becoming the Bulls' career leader in offensive boards, passing Horace Grant (1,888). On December 23, he was ruled out for two to four weeks because of a slight tear within his sprained left shoulder, an injury he suffered in the Bulls' December 21 game against the Brooklyn Nets. After missing nine straight games with the injury, he returned to action on January 11, recording 9 rebounds and 4 assists off the bench in a loss to the Washington Wizards. On January 14, he made just his second start of the season, replacing the injured Pau Gasol. In 38 minutes of action, he recorded 6 points, 16 rebounds, 8 assists, 2 steals and 1 block in a 115-111 overtime win over the Philadelphia 76ers. In the next game the following night, Noah re-injured his left shoulder against the Dallas Mavericks. He was subsequently ruled out for four to six months after it was determined that he required surgery to stabilize his left shoulder.

International career

Noah plays for the French national basketball team, although he also could have been eligible for the American or Swedish team. "The French National team is definitely something that has been in my dreams for a while," he said.

Noah made his first appearance for the French national basketball team on July 24, 2009 in a friendly match against Austria where he scored 16 points with 9 rebounds.

Noah then joined the French team at EuroBasket 2011.

He did not join the French Olympic team for the 2012 Olympic Games in London because of a serious ankle injury that he suffered during the 2012 NBA playoffs. Noah said that he needed more time and rehabilitation work before he would be ready to play again.

Player profile

Noah is known for his high-energy play, especially on the defensive end. He is a tenacious rebounder on both ends of the floor and is a good ball-handler and passer at the center position. His unorthodox shooting style has been the subject of much criticism. However, Noah has improved his free throw shooting and is a capable finisher close to the basket.

Personal life

On May 25, 2008, Noah was arrested for having an open container of alcohol and misdemeanor possession of marijuana in Gainesville, Florida. A few hours later, Noah was also cited for driving with a suspended license and not wearing a seat belt. He was sentenced to six months probation, a $200 fine for the marijuana and open container charges, and a $206 traffic fine.

In 2010, with his mother, Noah founded the Noah's Arc Foundation to help engage children with positive self-expression through arts and sports.

Awards

NCAA

• 2006 Associated Press (AP) All-SEC First Team
• Named an Honorable Mention All-American by AP.
• Most Outstanding Player in the 2006 Final Four
• NCAA Men's Division I basketball champion - 2006, 2007

NBA

• 2015 J. Walter Kennedy Citizenship Award
• All-NBA First Team (2014)
• 2014 NBA Defensive Player of the Year
• 2014 NBA All-Star
• 2014 NBA All-Defensive First Team
• 2013 NBA All-Star
• 2013 NBA All-Defensive First Team
• 2011 NBA All-Defensive Second Team

NBA career statistics

Legend
GP	Games played	GS	Games started	MPG	Minutes per game
FG%	Field goal percentage	3P%	3-point field goal percentage	FT%	Free throw percentage
RPG	Rebounds per game	APG	Assists per game	SPG	Steals per game
BPG	Blocks per game	PPG	Points per game	Bold	Career high

Regular season

Year	Team	GP	GS	MPG	FG%	3P%	FT%	RPG	APG	SPG	BPG	PPG
2007-08	Chicago	74	31	20.7	.482	.000	.691	5.6	1.1	.9	.9	6.6
2008-09	Chicago	80	55	24.2	.556	.000	.676	7.6	1.3	.6	1.4	6.7
2009-10	Chicago	64	54	30.1	.504	.000	.744	11.0	2.1	.5	1.6	10.7
2010-11	Chicago	48	48	32.8	.525	.000	.764	10.4	2.2	1.0	1.5	11.7
2011-12	Chicago	64	64	30.4	.508	.000	.748	9.8	2.5	.6	1.4	10.2
2012-13	Chicago	66	64	36.8	.481	.000	.751	11.1	4.0	1.2	2.1	11.9
2013-14	Chicago	80	80	35.3	.475	.000	.737	11.3	5.4	1.2	1.5	12.6
2014-15	Chicago	67	67	30.6	.445	.000	.603	9.6	4.7	.7	1.1	7.2
2015-16	Chicago	29	2	21.9	.383	.000	.489	8.8	3.8	.6	1.0	4.3
Career		572	465	29.5	.490	.000	.711	9.4	3.0	.8	1.4	9.3
All-Star		2	0	18.5	.667	.000	.000	7.5	4.0	.5	.5	8.0

Playoffs

Year	Team	GP	GS	MPG	FG%	3P%	FT%	RPG	APG	SPG	BPG	PPG
2009	Chicago	7	7	38.7	.510	.000	.760	13.1	2.3	.9	2.1	10.1
2010	Chicago	5	5	36.6	.528	.000	.947	13.0	2.6	1.8	1.4	14.8
2011	Chicago	16	16	33.1	.411	.000	.725	10.2	2.5	1.0	2.1	8.7
2012	Chicago	3	3	33.0	.731	.000	.636	9.3	3.0	.7	1.3	15.0
2013	Chicago	12	12	34.1	.437	.000	.641	9.6	2.3	.8	2.2	10.8
2014	Chicago	5	5	42.0	.512	.000	.588	12.8	4.6	.8	1.4	10.4
2015	Chicago	12	12	32.9	.408	.000	.650	11.0	3.2	0.8	1.2	5.8
Career		60	60	35.0	.465	.000	.676	11.0	2.8	1.0	1.8	9.7

[ Source: Wikipedia ]