Noah not thrilled with minutes restriction, wants to close games

In the immortal words of Alec Baldwin in "Glengarry Glen Ross," always be closing.

That's all Joakim Noah of the Chicago Bulls wants to do: close games. 

Noah spoke to Chicagoland media for the first time since the center was unable to close out Sunday's loss to the Oklahoma City Thunder because he had reached his organization-imposed 32-minute restriction.

"It'd be nice," Noah told reporters when asked if wanted to close out contests. He elaborated further, courtesy of K.C. Johnson of the Chicago Tribune.

It's frustrating. I think I’m not the only one who's frustrated sometimes. I think it’s part of the grind. ... I'm not trying to get caught up in any noise or anything like that. I don't want to be a distraction. We'll figure it out internally and do what’s best for the team.

While Noah conceded the minutes restriction – clearly not the idea of coach Tom Thibodeau, but those above him – is to protect Noah the player, it is understandable that a two-time NBA All-Star would be flummoxed by not being on the floor for the most meaningful minutes of a game. 

At the same time, given the Bulls horrible luck with injuries the past few seasons, aversion to risk could be becoming ingrained. According to Johnson's report, Noah has exceeded 32 minutes in 22 games this season, but that team sources said five were overlooked due to overtime.

With Noah's minutes under scrutiny, one upside up front for the Bulls is that sixth man power forward Taj Gibson is nearing a return from his ankle injury. Gibson told reporters Wednesday that he hopes to play this weekend. Chicago plays the Toronto Raptors on Friday and the Detroit Pistons on Saturday.