By: Dan

For Joakim Noah, his first two years in the NBA have been a roller coaster ride.

Noah, a key contributor to Florida’s back-to-back basketball championships, made an instant impression with his getup at the NBA draft two years ago. The crazy hair and the big bowtie certainly drew a lot of attention.

When he got to Chicago, he found that he had a lot of growing up to do. He got suspended for chewing out an assistant coach, and Ben Wallace called out the rookie and cited his lack of maturity.

Noah showed his immaturity last off season, when he came back to Gainesville and was busted for an open container violation and possession of marijuana. At this point, Gator and Bull fans alike had to be wondering what was going on with the eccentric Noah.

In the early part of the season, Noah was coming off the bench. But he ended up starting 54 games and first-year head coach Vinny Del Negro has inserted him into the starting lineup during what has turned out to be an epic series between the Bulls and Celtics.

Noah made the play of his NBA career Thursday night. With the game tied at 123 in triple overtime, Noah stole a pass from Paul Pierce, drove to the basket and dunked over Pierce. Noah displayed his trademark emotion after the play, which endeared him to some many Gator fans (and made him an easy target for opposing fans) over the years.

Not only did Noah’s play give his team a three-point lead, but it also got Pierce to foul out, which was crucial down the stretch. Even though Boston’s Ray Allen was the one on fire with 51 points, not having Pierce in the final seconds was a huge blow.

Noah’s stellar play highlighted what was been an excellent first playoff series for the NBA sophomore. In the six games of the first-round series, Noah has averaged 10.7 points, 12.8 rebounds and 2.2 blocks per game. He’s posted double-doubles in three of the six games and has pulled down 17 rebounds in two games. This could very well be Noah’s breakout moment. I expect him to enjoy similar NBA success to fellow UF alumni Al Horford and David Lee.