Report: Hornacek shoved Noah first during heated altercation
It sounds like New York Knicks head coach Jeff Hornacek deserves his fair share of blame for Joakim Noah's current departure from the team.
Noah and the Knicks mutually agreed to a leave of absence until further notice stemming from a confrontation between he and Hornacek during a team practice on Jan. 24. No punches were thrown, but Hornacek reportedly did shove Noah first before they were eventually separated, according to The New York Daily News' Stefan Bondy.
Related: Once a trend-setting center, is Joakim Noah's NBA story finished?
The reason Noah and his coach were heated in the first place was because the near 7-footer was unhappy with playing just five minutes in an 11-point loss to the Golden State Warriors the night prior.
New York was unable to move Noah ahead of the trade deadline earlier in the month, mainly because of his gargantuan contract which pays him roughly $38 million over the next two seasons. There are no plans in place as of yet to buy him out, either.
Noah underwent surgery at the end of last season to repair a torn rotator cuff, and was also absent to begin the 2017-18 campaign due to a suspension he received for violating the league's anti-drug policy.
The former NBA Defensive Player of the Year has made just seven appearances this season, averaging 1.7 points and two boards per game in 5.7 minutes.