New reports indicate that veteran player Joakim Noah no longer wants to play for the Chicago Bulls next season. According to sources, he's been telling his teammates that he intends to leave the team once free agency begins.
Rumors about Noah's desire to depart from the team was first reported by the Chicago Sun Times. According to the site, another player from the team said that Noah has trust issues with the Bulls' front office.
The exact details of the potential rift between Noah and the front office were not provided, but it may have something to do with how general manager Gar Forman and coach Fred Hoiberg are handling the team.
After all, when Forman hired Hoiberg, Noah lost his role as the team's starter. But aside from this, there could also be other administrative issues Noah has with the front office.
According to the source, there was even one instance when Noah turned down Forman's request to the athlete to participate in one of the events of the team's non-profit organization, Bulls Charities. As noted by the insider, Noah did not like how he was approached for the matter.
But then again, since Noah has not yet commented on the latest rumors, it cannot be confirmed if there is really bad blood between him and the Bulls office. Also, this detail certainly contradicts the player's demeanor especially back in April when he talked about how much he enjoys playing in Chicago.
John Paxson, the executive vice president of the team, also stated that the franchise greatly appreciates Noah. However, the executive noted that negotiations still has to be made regarding his status in the team next season.
"Anyone who has been around us, anybody who has spoken to either Forman or I about Joakim, they know how we feel about him," Paxson said according to ESPN.
"He represents a lot of the things that we believe in," he added. "To me, he's one of the most genuine people I've ever been around in this business, as far as people go. So we have an affinity for Jo. But we've got to talk, we've got to see where it goes."
