Knicks, Noah agree to 4-year, $72M deal

The New York Knicks agreed to a four-year, $72-million contract with free-agent center Joakim Noah, according to ESPN's Ramona Shelburne.

The deal is fully locked in, with no options for either side, USA Today's Sam Amick reports.

The Knicks have seemingly had their sights set on Noah from the moment they dealt their incumbent starting center, Robin Lopez, in exchange for Noah's longtime Chicago Bulls teammate Derrick Rose.

Even before the deal was reported finalized, Noah was repping his soon-to-be team.

It's a new day for Noah, who, like Rose, never played for any team but the Bulls. Across nine seasons in Chicago, he averaged 9.3 points, 9.4 rebounds, three assists, and 1.4 blocks. He made two All-Star teams, three All-Defensive teams, and an All-NBA first team. In 2013-14, he was named Defensive Player of the Year and finished fourth in MVP voting.

After that magical season, though, Noah declined precipitously, culminating in his last, injury-marred campaign with the Bulls. In 29 games before succumbing to season-ending shoulder surgery, he averaged 4.3 points, 8.8 rebounds, and 3.8 assists, while shooting 38.3 percent from the field.

The Knicks, with a fully guaranteed deal that will take him through his age-35 season, are clearly banking on a healthy Noah returning to at least some semblance of the form he displayed before last season. At the least, he remains a strong rebounder and a preternaturally intuitive passer, and his playmaking from the elbow should make him a good fit in the Knicks' triangle-oriented system.