Joakim Noah To Face Stats Drops? Suspended For 20 Games For Violating Drug Policy
Breaking news coming from the center as Joakim Noah, a professional basketball player for the New York Knicks of the National Basketball Association has been suspended for 20 games without a single penny for violating the league's anti-drug policy. NBA announced the suspension of Joakim Noah on 25th March 2017, after his test resulted positive for a substance found in some over-the-counter supplements.
The suspension will start when Joakim Noah recovers as he has not played a game since Feb. 4, 2017, and had arthroscopic surgery on his left knee Feb. 27 of 2017 to remove loose fragments of cartilage or bone. But he is "eligible and physically able to play" in either a regular season or in a playoff game, the NBA said. The suspension would carry into the new 2017-18 season.
Noah was expected to miss the rest of the ongoing season due to injury, but New York Knicks will likely try to have him return as soon as possible to start their season on the suspension.
The New York Knicks expected to evaluate Noah later in April to determine if he'll be able to return to the court this season. Knicks coach Jeff Hornacek said to the reporters in San Antonio on March of 2017 that Noah hasn't yet started his on-court training. The Knicks have nine games remaining on their fixture following their game against the Spurs, so Noah will serve at least 11 games of the suspension in the next season.
The NBA’s Players Association announced Saturday that neither Noah nor the union would appeal the suspension of NBA. The union published a statement:
"We believe that this isolated occurrence was a regrettable mistake. Joakim has offered his deepest apologies for this infraction."
The substance of which Noah resulted positive is a selective androgen receptor modulator LGD-4033 which is banned under the NBA's collective bargaining agreement.
LGD-4033 is defined as:
 "non-steroidal, selective androgen receptor modulator that, much like testosterone, can create anabolic activity in muscles and bones" and "provides many of the muscle-building and therapeutic benefits of testosterone, without the same level of troublesome side effects,"
The Knicks engaged Noah to a four-year deal worth $72 million contracts over the summer. Noah has performed well below expectations but has missed games throughout the season because of a hamstring injury.
Noah's stats averaged 5.0 points and 8.8 rebounds in overall 46 games in 2016 season. Noah will forfeit around $2 million to $3 million in salary during his suspension. The exact amount lost is unclear because the formula in the new CBA for lost pay during a suspension results in lower monetary penalties for players.
