Bulls center Joakim Noah scored 10 points on 2 of 6 shooting while grabbing 15 rebounds in his team's 113-98 win over the Cavaliers Thursday.
It was just the second double-double for Noah since the calendar turned to 2015, but he also managed to match point guard Derrick Rose by dishing out seven assists in the win while adding one block. The Bulls take a four-game winning streak into the All-Star break.
An energetic and healthy Noah was the aggressor, battling inside for rebounds (he had five offensive boards), making the right passes early (all six of his assists came in the first half) and closing out the Cavaliers with stifling defense (Timofey Mozgov and Tristan Thompson combined for just 23 points and 19 rebounds in 59 minutes). The Bulls won the rebounding battle by four and scored six more paint points than the visitors.
"Joakim had great energy. He was terrific. Multiple energy plays. And when he’s out there and he’s moving the ball the way he can your offense is going to have great rhythm, and it did," Thibodeau said. "I could tell this morning he was going to be ready."
"We’re a team that’s been through a lot. A lot of ups and downs already. Just to come out and get a win like that against a quality team, a team that we could potentially see in the playoffs, down the road," Noah said, "I think is good for the morale of this ball club."