Joakim Noah isn’t even an official member of the New York Knicks yet, but he may already be the team’s best recruiter.
Free agent guard Courtney Lee, who the team had been courting, agreed to a four-year, $50 million deal with the Knicks on Saturday, per Alex Kennedy of Basketball Insiders. According to Ian Begley of ESPN, the deal would not have happened if not for Noah.
The Courtney Lee deal "would not have happened without Joakim Noah," a source close to Lee says. More: https://t.co/aGilwYZ8Kn
— Ian Begley (@IanBegley) July 3, 2016
Lee, 30, reportedly had several offers on the table and chose New York in part due to the recruitment of the two-time All-Star Noah, who is said to have been “instrumental” in the process. Noah just agreed to sign with the Knicks a few days ago himself, yet he already appears to be fully invested in the franchise.
The signings of Noah and Lee, two defensively-oriented, team-first players, should add a dimension of grit and unselfishness to the fabric of the Knicks heading into the future.
