“When Bosh came on his visit, I thought it was a done deal, I thought he’d take Dwyane [Wade], and if those two come, we’ll get LeBron”: Joakim Noah recalls how he thought the Miami Heat big 3 were going to join the Chicago Bulls in 2010 free agency

Chicago Bulls legend Joakim Noah recently reveals that he thought LeBron James, Dwyane Wade, and Chris Bosh would join the Bulls in 2010.

At the peak of the powers in 2010, the Chicago Bulls were a powerhouse in the East. They had a young superstar guard in Derrick Rose. Additionally, they rooster boasted of star players like Luol Deng, Joakim Noah, Carlos Boozer, and many more talented players.

While the Bulls could not capture a title during the Rose-Noah era, they were good enough to catch the eye of several notable stars in free agency. The offseason of 2010 was fast approaching, and players of the stacked 2003 draft class were all set to be free agents.

In fact, the Bulls’ former star revealed in an interview that he thought that it was a “done deal” for Chris Bosh to sign with Chicago for a new contract in 2010, and if that could have happened, the stretch big would certainly convince LeBron James and Dwyane Wade to join him.

Via Zach Lowe, ESPN –

“Chicago lost in the first round again, but hoarded cap space for two max-level superstars. LeBron James, Chris Bosh, and Wade were free agents. All three met with the Bulls.” Noah lobbied Bosh.

“When Chris came on his visit, I thought it was a done deal. I thought he’d take Dwyane, and if those two come, we’ll get LeBron.”

Unfortunately for Bulls fans, this didn’t quite come to fruition. The trio ended up joining the Miami Heat that summer. Moreover, LeBron and Co. won 2 NBA championships with the Heat in the next 4 years.

Also Read: Many NBA insiders believe James will have to change his game to accommodate Russell Westbrook.

What if LeBron James, Dwyane Wade, and Chris Bosh joined the Chicago Bulls in 2010?

The Chicago Bulls were on the back of an impressive 41-41 season. Additionally, they also had a young Derrick Rose and Joakim Noah on their roster. Moreover, they had the cap space to sign other free agents thanks to Rose and Noah still being on their rookie contracts.

Part of the problem was that Rose “wasn’t deeply involved in the recruiting process.” It was reported that Rose even declined to be a part of the pitch to LeBron. The 1x MVP ended up choosing to record a video instead. As a result, the move fell through and the trio choose to take their talents to South Beach.

Still, the thought of facing a line-up of Rose, Wade, LeBron, Bosh, and Noah is terrifying. Imagine Rose running pick-and-rolls with James as the screener. Now, that’s a scary sight.

When it comes to defense, they would have been scarier. They would have Dwayne Wade, one of the best shooting defensive guards. Couple that with Bosh, who guard all 5 positions, and Joakim Noah, a future defensive player of the year winner.

If the Bulls had pulled the move off, it would almost guarantee the Bulls the championship. It would have been the beginning of a dynasty for the next few years with that amount of star power on their roster.

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Ultimately, we’ll never know if LeBron and company would have been better off choosing the Bulls over the Heat in 2010, both from a winning perspective and a career arc one. However, to date, this remains as one of the biggest what-ifs to ever exist.