NEW YORK — Joakim Noah may have left the Bulls, but he says Chicago will always be his home.
The former Chicago Bull published a farewell note to the city he called home for nine years Thursday, saying "the best times in his life took place on the United Center floor."
A prolific philanthropist, Noah also said his dream "is still to help make the city a safer place for kids to grow up."
Meanwhile, Noah was photographed riding a bike-share bicycle Wednesday in his hometown of New York. News of Noah's intention to sign with the New York Knicks broke last week.
The photographer, Jego Armstrong, said he saw Noah rent the bicycle near Lexington Avenue and 24th Street in Manhattan before taking this picture.
A man of the people. [Facebook/Jego Armstrong]
Noah had a privileged childhood — he's the son of a professional tennis star and a model — but endeared himself to Bulls fans with prolific charity work and an all-out style of play. Noah was raised in Paris and Manhattan before playing college basketball at the University of Florida.
He won the NBA's Walter J. Kennedy Citizenship Award in 2015 and once crashed a random house party here in 2013.
"We just want to represent," Noah said of the Bulls during a tumultuous 2014 season. "Like when I look at the top of the arena, and I look up top and I see teams call timeout, and I see the guy who looks this big and he's up cheering up and down, jumping up and down, that's the guy I play for."
RELATED STORY: Joakim Noah Signs With Knicks; Our Fondest Memories Of Fan Fave
Citi Bike, New York's bike-sharing program similar to Divvy, costs $12 a day or $155 for a year. Noah could buy 464,516 years of unlimited Citi Bike rides with his new deal.
Not that Noah isn't in good company. Actor Leonardo DiCaprio is also known for taking spins through New York on a Citi Bike.
For more neighborhood news, listen to DNAinfo Radio here: