How can you not love Bulls' Joakim Noah?
Remember the day the Bulls drafted Joakim Noah?
Remember Noah posing with David Stern?
I Googled 'Noah draft picture' this week just to make sure it was as crazy as I remembered.
It was.
Then and now:I remember that night thinking, OK, this guy is a goof. What have the Bulls gotten themselves into?I couldn't have been more wrong.The Bulls drafted a warrior.I know he's gonna say and do some whacked stuff in the years to come, but I don't care.Love the guy.Derby thoughts:While Orb looked sensational in sweeping to the front for the win, I was almost more impressed by how my top pick Goldencents backed up gamely for a solid 17th-place finish.Two questions:1. Golden Soul?2. Golden. Soul??Things I don't understand:Why gas is still priced in fractions?What the proper etiquette is the second time you cross paths with someone on a walking trail. Is a Muppet smile and head nod enough?And, finally, why in the world is Goldencents entered in the Preakness?Third and gone:The one thing about having attitude is you better have both superior skill and work ethic to back it up.In that case, it's time for Ian Stewart to go.OK, c'mon, really?Now Cicero is hopping on the Rosemont train in an attempt to lure the Cubs?Not gonna work.Better sports name #8230;:Cal Clutterbuck or Rock Shoulders?I'm going with Rock Shoulders just because I think he once guest-starred on #8220;The Flintstones#8221;.Wait, what?Just asking:What would you get in return if you traded Derrick Rose?Should the Bulls even think about it?Has the bad PR ruined the relationship between Rose and Bulls fans?No Bull:Vegas man RJ Bell gives the Bulls an 8 percent chance of advancing past the Heat.I'm afraid that might be a little high.Regardless of the outcome of the series, though, we'll always have that Game 1 to savor.Ernst is young #8230; and rich:Love this stat about Derek Ernst, last week's winner of the PGA's Wells Fargo Championship: He came into the event ranked No. 1,207 in the world.Ernst probably loves this stat just a titch more: $1.2 million, as in the amount he took home for winning.BTW:The Players' Championship is not a major, though we'll hear it mentioned as the unofficial fifth major in golf, oh, about a thousand times this weekend.If there's one thing I know about businessmen:It's that they enjoy a nice business lunch.Darn you, Orion Samuelson #8230; can't get that out of my head.Gotta say it:Josh Harding is my favorite Minnesota Wild.Crowd control:Hey, kudos to Arlington for attracting more than 23,000 for their Derby Day festivities. Big days like that always attract a lot of new fans to the track.With that in mind, is it too much to ask Arlington to station some customer-service reps throughout the parking lots to help those lost souls on busy days like that?Might be good PR.The quote:#8220;The good news is that this game will end.#8221;#8212; Radio analyst Bill Wennington during the second half of the Bulls' blowout loss Wednesday.mspellman@dailyherald.com