We need all the stories involving Joakim Noah and Phil Jackson! Hey, maybe they're complete lies, but they always seem to be hilarious, random, and very entertaining.
Last week, Jackson shared a story where he met Noah in New York during the spring. "I ran into him on the streets of New York City. Just accidental—he's out and he's an active guy," the Zen Master said. "So he wanted me to do a pull up on his arm to demonstrate that his shoulder's in fine shape. I refused." Phil says their encounter helped convince him that health shouldn't stand in the way of signing the 31-year-old center.
On Friday, Joakim revealed that he initially got an opportunity to speak with Jackson on the phone five years ago, thanks to his dentist who was a friend of the Knicks president. For some reason, that conversation resulted in Noah going to Jackson's home in Montana completely unannounced. Obviously, Phil was "stunned" by his surprise visit.
Per the New York Post:
“I took a plane, went to Montana and I knocked on his door,’’ Noah said. “We started talking. ‘Why are you here?’ [he asked]. I said, ‘I don’t know.’ It was a great couple of days — an opportunity to meet one of the legends and spend time with him. Life works in mysterious ways and now we’re here.”
According to Chris Herring of the Wall Street Journal, Noah ended up staying with Jackson for three days. Man, if those walls could talk.
Send all complaints, compliments, and tips to sportstips@complex.com.
