Is this the end for Noah and the Bulls?
The biggest fissures form from the smallest cracks.
It was supposed to be a small tear for Chicago Bulls center Joakim Noah. No big deal. He's as tough as they come and he's battled through far worse injuries. After missing three weeks, he was greeted with a warm ovation Monday upon his return at the United Center.
Five days later, the tear became a separated shoulder. A cold chill fell over the "Madhouse on Madison" as Noah let out a harrowing cry before heading straight for the locker room while his left arm flopped lifelessly.
The prognosis came a day later: he'll miss four-to-six months, which will effectively close the book on what had been a miserable 2015-16 campaign.
The writing has been on the wall for months. Before Noah's name came up in trade rumors, his minutes were slashed precipitously and he was relegated to the bench.
With only a year left on his contract, it was fair to question whether Noah's time in Chicago was coming to an end.
He wasn't happy, but he's always made sacrifices for the Bulls franchise. He stayed quiet and said he was willing to do whatever the team needed. What the franchise needed wasn't him, however, as it was desperate for someone who can stretch the floor, punish mismatches, or just flat-out hit a layup.
After a myriad of knee, ankle, and shoulder injuries, Noah slipped from the top form he showed in 2014, when he was named the Defensive Player of the Year and a member of the All-NBA first team.
The answer for why he toiled away on the bench is simple: He wasn't the answer anymore. Pau Gasol and Taj Gibson were the answer. Nikola Mirotic at power forward and more opportunities for rookie Bobby Portis were the answer. Noah was part of the problem, and head coach Fred Hoiberg knew it.
They were destined for a breakup. His injury is likely the final blow.
Noah - like the rest of Chicago's core that stuck together since 2010 - deserved better.
It was supposed to be the Bulls' second coming after Michael Jordan revived the struggling franchise in the 80s. They had the youngest MVP ever in Derrick Rose. They had one of the league's brightest coaches in Tom Thibodeau running a revolutionary defensive scheme. They won 60 games in 2010-11 and were supposed to challenge the Miami Heat for supremacy in the East.
That prophecy never came to fruition. A rash of knee injuries for Rose put an end to that. While he healed up, it was Noah who took the reigns and kept the seat warm.
However, Noah was never supposed to be the proverbial No. 1 guy. Even before the injuries, he wasn't some prodigal scorer. His jumper was as unreliable as it was unsightly, and he's never once topped the 30-point plateau.
But between 2012 and 2014, the Bulls unquestionably belonged to Noah. He made unthinkable plays through the high post. He threaded passes that point guards dared not try. He anchored the defense. For everything he lacked in skill, Noah made up in will.
Try as he might, Noah's efforts alone were never enough. Chicago never advanced past the conference semifinals without Rose. In retrospect, it's incredible the team managed even one series victory (over the Brooklyn Nets in 2012-13) when Nate Robinson (no longer in the league) was the team's leading scorer.
It took a superhuman 24-point, 14-rebound, six-block effort by Noah, on one healthy foot, to will Chicago to victory in Game 7.
Noah gave his blood, sweat, and tears for the Bulls. He filled every gap the Bulls needed, and as cruel as it is, a lifetime of diving on the court for loose balls and playing with a maniacal all-out energy has caught up to him.
Like the Bulls, Noah deserved a happier ending.