The Bulls lacked a low-post scoring presence, and although the 6-foot-11 Noah is not known for his shot, he helped Florida win the N-C-A-A championship the past two years.

He averaged 12 points, eight-point-four rebounds and one-point-eight blocks as a junior last season, when the Gators became the first program to win back-to-back titles in 15 years.

And he came up big a year earlier, when he was named the Most Outstanding Player of the 2006 Final Four.

Noah, whose dad Yannick won the 1983 French Open and is in the International Tennis Hall of Fame, has a strong athletic pedigree.

Joakim Noah told E-S-P-N he feels fortunate and blessed.