Why are there still questions about Joakim Noah’s foot?

I’m not complaining about Bulls beat reporters asking questions about it; as long as the Bulls don’t shut Noah down, they have to ask.

But Noah needs to rest. And we’ve known this for a while. On Monday, K.C. Johnson reported a newfound pessimism regarding the Bulls’ interpretation of Noah’s injury.

“He could be out a while,” (Vinny) Del Negro admitted. “He could be out a week, two weeks, a month. I don’t know yet. It’s going to be how he reacts, how his foot reacts. It comes down to rest and getting treatments and see how he reacts.”

A month ago, a doctor told Noah what he must do: rest for six consecutive weeks. Noah and the Bulls ignored this suggestion. Instead, Noah played for limited minutes in a few games. Then, when they got really excited, he played 27 minutes against the Blazers on Friday night.

If anyone can find a link or a professional opinion that suggests the initial diagnosis may be wrong, I’d be happy to post a retraction and say I’m an idiot who shouldn’t discuss medical issues – unless I actual dig around Noah’s foot myself, of course.

But so far, I can’t find an alternative treatment to rest. The conveniently named Plantar-fasciitis.org says prolonging treatment will cause the condition to worsen. And the Bulls not only prolonged treatment, but they ignored it.

The Bulls want Noah to play and heal fast, and they want him to do both at the same time.

The Bulls are better when he plays. The Bulls are even better when he’s healthy and playing. The team’s desire to have him on the floor is totally understandable; the thought-process is not. Even if Noah only logs a couple minutes per game, his foot won't get any better.

However, if someone can show me proof that jumping up and down on a hardwood court is a good treatment for plantar fasciitis, I’d be willing to post that too.

Erick is a contributor to i94 Sports. You can find his daily thoughts at his site Outside the Clubhouse.