NBA Preview: The Chicago Bulls
"In the Chi, we even rootin' for a garbage team." - rap artist Common
"Be" is a tremendous album, probably one of my top two or three favorite CDs in my massive collection. The album was a hit in 2005, but it's obvious that Common wrote the lyrics prior to the start of the Bulls' 2004-2005 campaign. Either way, it appears as though Common's lyrics are outdated after consecutive playoff appearances in Chicago.
Fondest Bull Memory: Words can't even describe it. MichaelAir23Jordan of youtube.com does a much better job in his four minute Michael Jordan montage. This is nothing against any of the players currently in the NBA or any of the players that will invade the league in the coming seasons, but there will never, ever, EVER be another player better than Jordan.
Last Year: EVER!!! Wait, what was I talking about? Oh yes, last year's Chicago Bulls had to rally in the second half of the season to make the playoffs as the seventh seed, but arguably gave the Miami Heat the toughest series in the East. In my last blog I wrote about the Bobcats and their ability to force turnovers but their inability to stop people. Well, scoring on the Bulls was just about as tough as it is to score on their Windy City football counterpart. Opponents shot 42.6 percent against them, and that figure was the best in the NBA. It started with a stingy defensive back-court in Kirk Hinrich and Chris Duhon, and ended with Tyson Chandler tossing shots back like a college co-ed during spring break and grabbing posession-ending rebounds. Offensively, however, this team struggled due to their dearth of big men who could score. This team depended solely on Hinrich and Ben Gordon attacking off the dribble and hitting jumpers. That alone (okay, Andres Nocioni wasn't bad either) kept them in the Miami series, but it also probably cost them the series, too.
This Year: The biggest acquisition in the off-season for the Bulls was Ben Wallace, and the jury is still out on whether or not this was a positive move. On the surface, the answer is a resounding yes. Wallace is an opposing center's nightmare, because he doesn't even care about scoring. He's there to shut you down, make you feel impotent, and send you home crying to your groupies. But, I see him as only a more aggressive, harder-working, more cut version of Chandler with even less offensive game. Thus, the Bulls still lack a scoring punch, mainly on the interior. Drafting Tyrus Thomas was a step in the right direction, but he is rawer than Monday night (wrestling, that is). Chicago Tribune writer Sam Smith thinks the Bulls should trade for Clippers' swingman Corey Maggette, and while I can see him doing quite well in Chicago, he doesn't fit their primary need: a low post scorer. Hey! I've got a better one: what about Zach Randolph? That'd be a steal for the Bulls. But, even if they don't make any moves, they're still in good position for a high finish in the East. They're loaded with young talent ( I haven't even mentioned Luol Deng or Thabo Sefolosha yet), and the addition of P.J. Brown gives them vital leadership in the front-court.
Player on the Rise: I think we have a tie. The Arlington Heights Daily Herald, a Chicago based publication, reported that Deng had beaten out Nocioni for the starting small forward slot. It honestly doesn't matter which of them start, because they are both obviously going to play heavy minutes. Deng is a versatile swingman who is just starting to come into his own, and Nocioni showed me a great deal in both the playoffs against Miami and in the FIBA Basketball Championships for Argentina. It's a luxury to have both of these guys on the same team for two reasons: 1) match-up problems and, 2) trade bait.
Player on the Decline: Brown has one, maybe two more years left in him. He'll play some good minutes but expect him to lose time at the expense of Deng, Nocioni, Thomas and even Mike Sweetney if the Bulls keep him around.
Justin's Take: I definitely think this will be a playoff team. How high they finish is up in the air, but I tend to be on the more positive side of the fence with the Bulls. An already stingy defense gets better, plus the offensive core group of Hinrich, Gordon, Nocioni and Deng have two years of playoff experience under their belts. Second round? Yes. Conference finals? Possibly. Finals? Hopefully the Bulls have Zach Randolph's agent on speed dial.
Projected Record: 53-29
"Be" is a tremendous album, probably one of my top two or three favorite CDs in my massive collection. The album was a hit in 2005, but it's obvious that Common wrote the lyrics prior to the start of the Bulls' 2004-2005 campaign. Either way, it appears as though Common's lyrics are outdated after consecutive playoff appearances in Chicago.
Fondest Bull Memory: Words can't even describe it. MichaelAir23Jordan of youtube.com does a much better job in his four minute Michael Jordan montage. This is nothing against any of the players currently in the NBA or any of the players that will invade the league in the coming seasons, but there will never, ever, EVER be another player better than Jordan.
Last Year: EVER!!! Wait, what was I talking about? Oh yes, last year's Chicago Bulls had to rally in the second half of the season to make the playoffs as the seventh seed, but arguably gave the Miami Heat the toughest series in the East. In my last blog I wrote about the Bobcats and their ability to force turnovers but their inability to stop people. Well, scoring on the Bulls was just about as tough as it is to score on their Windy City football counterpart. Opponents shot 42.6 percent against them, and that figure was the best in the NBA. It started with a stingy defensive back-court in Kirk Hinrich and Chris Duhon, and ended with Tyson Chandler tossing shots back like a college co-ed during spring break and grabbing posession-ending rebounds. Offensively, however, this team struggled due to their dearth of big men who could score. This team depended solely on Hinrich and Ben Gordon attacking off the dribble and hitting jumpers. That alone (okay, Andres Nocioni wasn't bad either) kept them in the Miami series, but it also probably cost them the series, too.
This Year: The biggest acquisition in the off-season for the Bulls was Ben Wallace, and the jury is still out on whether or not this was a positive move. On the surface, the answer is a resounding yes. Wallace is an opposing center's nightmare, because he doesn't even care about scoring. He's there to shut you down, make you feel impotent, and send you home crying to your groupies. But, I see him as only a more aggressive, harder-working, more cut version of Chandler with even less offensive game. Thus, the Bulls still lack a scoring punch, mainly on the interior. Drafting Tyrus Thomas was a step in the right direction, but he is rawer than Monday night (wrestling, that is). Chicago Tribune writer Sam Smith thinks the Bulls should trade for Clippers' swingman Corey Maggette, and while I can see him doing quite well in Chicago, he doesn't fit their primary need: a low post scorer. Hey! I've got a better one: what about Zach Randolph? That'd be a steal for the Bulls. But, even if they don't make any moves, they're still in good position for a high finish in the East. They're loaded with young talent ( I haven't even mentioned Luol Deng or Thabo Sefolosha yet), and the addition of P.J. Brown gives them vital leadership in the front-court.
Player on the Rise: I think we have a tie. The Arlington Heights Daily Herald, a Chicago based publication, reported that Deng had beaten out Nocioni for the starting small forward slot. It honestly doesn't matter which of them start, because they are both obviously going to play heavy minutes. Deng is a versatile swingman who is just starting to come into his own, and Nocioni showed me a great deal in both the playoffs against Miami and in the FIBA Basketball Championships for Argentina. It's a luxury to have both of these guys on the same team for two reasons: 1) match-up problems and, 2) trade bait.
Player on the Decline: Brown has one, maybe two more years left in him. He'll play some good minutes but expect him to lose time at the expense of Deng, Nocioni, Thomas and even Mike Sweetney if the Bulls keep him around.
Justin's Take: I definitely think this will be a playoff team. How high they finish is up in the air, but I tend to be on the more positive side of the fence with the Bulls. An already stingy defense gets better, plus the offensive core group of Hinrich, Gordon, Nocioni and Deng have two years of playoff experience under their belts. Second round? Yes. Conference finals? Possibly. Finals? Hopefully the Bulls have Zach Randolph's agent on speed dial.
Projected Record: 53-29
posted by Justin Cherot @ 12:50 AM
1 Comments:
At 11:18 PM ,
Colin Donohue said...
Wait, the Wizards won't win 50, but the Bulls will win 53. I can't buy that. This team is staunch defensively, but they lack that break-out player. They have nothing from the low post. They have a spot up shooter in Gordon and a distributer in Hinrich. Where's the superstar? Where's the consistent scoring coming from? If this team is a 50-win squad, so are the Wizards.
Also, Common is a beast, and Be was a great album. Not as good as the J-Dilla influenced Like Water for Chocolate, but good nonetheless.
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