What Joakim Noah would do if he were president is seriously important

ben rohrbach

Mon, Jul 11, 2016, 5:30 PM

Knicks teammates Joakim Noah (left) and Derrick Rose meet President Barack Obama (right) as members of the Chicago Bulls in 2010. (Pete Souza/Official White House Photo)

In an extensive Q&A with New York Post columnist Steve Serby, recently signed New York Knicks center Joakim Noah covered topics ranging from his adoration of the 1990s Knickerbockers (“Animals,” he called them, “I like the animals”) to his admiration of Tim Tebow (“at the end of the day, he was an animal”) — the most surprising answer being his selection of Drew Barrymore as his favorite actress.

But it was Noah’s less surprising take on a far more serious topic that spoke loudest in the interview.

Q: If you were president of the United States, you would …
A: I would make it illegal to buy guns.

That’s a heavy topic. On one hand, it’s a wonderfully simplistic answer to an incredibly complex issue. No guns, no gun violence. That’s the theory anyway. On the other hand, there’s a large contingent of Americans who will shout about the Second Amendment in response to such a statement. It’s in the gray area between where politicians must compromise. But Noah was not asked to compromise here.

No doubt, Noah understands the subject’s complexity. After all, his Noah’s Arc Foundation was built on standing against gun violence. It was Noah who dropped his six-shooting air gun routine in the wake of the 2012 Sandy Hook Elementary School shooting in Newtown, Conn. It was Noah who joined Stephen Curry, Chris Paul and new teammate Carmelo Anthony in calling for an end to gun violence on behalf of the NBA in a national ad campaign by Everytown for Gun Safety this past December.

And it’s Noah still waiting, like many Americans, for stricter gun laws.

So, in the wake of shootings that left two black men killed at the hands of police in Minnesota and Louisiana and five Dallas police officers allegedly killed by a black man in alleged retaliation, we should not be surprised Noah spoke so passionately on the subject in his lengthy Q&A with Serby.

Q: What are your views on what’s been happening this past week?
A: This past week? … This past decade? Or this past … forever? My views haven’t really changed much. It’s just very sad what’s going on in this country. Not just the police brutality, that’s getting a lot of the headlines right now, but just kids killing kids, and kids having access to automatic rifles, and school shootings. … It’s just disappointing that these laws aren’t changing. It’s almost like you hear all these things, and you almost become numb to the realities. This is not normal. They have to change the laws. They have to change the gun laws.
Q: It’s sad what this country is going through.
A: This is the best country in the world. The most open-minded country in the world. Freedom of speech, you can say whatever you want. There’s so many great things about this country. I’ve traveled the world. I’ve lived in a lot of different countries … but this gun violence is out of control, and they need to do something about it.

I think Noah speaks for a lot of Americans when he says, “It’s almost like you hear all these things, and you almost become numb to the realities.” This is the sad state of affairs facing President Barack Obama, a man Noah — the son of a Swedish mother and French father — expressed great respect for.

“I really love what he represents — being black, being white, being born in Hawaii,” added Noah, who fundraised for Obama in 2011. “He’s somebody who comes from a lot of different backgrounds. And I feel like that’s what America is … people from all different cultures. Everybody’s different. It’s a big melting pot, and that’s who Obama is, and I think that he represents this country perfect.”

Noah’s voice is an important one, especially as it is paired now on the big stage of New York City alongside Anthony, who joined Noah as arguably the most vocal proponents of political change in the sporting world this past week: “I’m calling for all my fellow athletes to step up and take charge.”

Coming from his adopted home of Chicago to his hometown of New York — two of the nation’s most notorious hotbeds of gun violence, present and past — Noah brought an on-court reputation for disruptive behavior that he hopes delivers the Knicks their first NBA title since 1973. But it could be that same trait off the court that ultimately helps bring the biggest victory to his city and beyond.

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