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I posted a thread back during the season, when all the Melo talk was hot, and stated that the Bulls would be better off without him. I still stand by that thought. Melo would certainly give the Bulls a great big three with Rose and Joakim, but too much would depend on Rose being healthy and the Bulls likely would have had to gut their roster to make it all happen.
Well, I got my wish, and now I will get to see if I was right or wrong. The Bulls have made a series of solid moves in the wake of loosing Melo. Let's take a look at these moves and what I think they can equate to.
Pau Gasol. The Bulls "big" move was to sign Gasol to a three year deal. The contract is not too steep for a proven veteran power forward with his best years behind him. Gasol took less money to join the Bulls and that is a good sign. The Bulls have a lot of depth with their bigs, so Gasol will not have to play 35+ minutes a night. I expect him to be the starter along side Noah, but He will see reduced minutes. Thibs will be able to switch in Taj when ever he needs tighter defense and bring Gasol in for some scoring. I am most excited to see the pairing of Gasol with Noah. Two bigs with the ability to have double digit assists. Should be fun to watch.
Doug McDermott The Bulls big move on draft night was to turn two picks into Doug McDermott. The Bulls have been pretty good recently making draft picks and after watching a few summer league games, it look like McBuckets has a solid future ahead of him. I am not one to drink the Kool Aid, so time will tell just how good he is. One thing that is certain is that he can score and Bulls need scoring from the outside. When the Bulls had Korver they were able to really spread the floor. I expect McDermott to be a better version of Korver in the years to come. He has the size to play inside on smaller players and he should become an average defender in Thibs' system.
Nikola Mirotic It has been a long time coming, but he is finally in the U.S. and I am very excited to watch this guy grow in the NBA. I am not expecting him to be the real deal this season. I think we will see some amazing games out of him, but likely he will be just average most of the time. What he brings is yet another player that have drain threes and he also has the ability to drive and finish. At his best he reminds me of a mix between Toni Kukoc and Hedo Turkoglu with a bit more size. I know that Hedo is not what most call a great player, but he did have a solid string of seasons back in the day. I think Mirotic could develop into a solid 3rd or 4th option of a contending team. At worst, I see him as a decent role player.
Aaron Brooks At the time of this writing the Bulls are talking with Aaron Brooks and all signs point to him signing a deal with the Bulls. This is quietly my favorite signing for the Bulls. If Rose goes down again, having Brooks and Hinrich will be a very good backup plan. Neither is great, but Brooks could be yet another PG that thrives under Thibs. Brooks brings ball handling and a great outside shot, and Hinrich brings tight defense and leadership. I think they are a nice set of backups and they both offer Tom options.
So let's take a look at what I think the starting 5 will be by midseason and their backups at each position.
PG - Rose/Hinrich/Brooks
SG - Butler/Snell/Hinrich
SF - McDermott/Mirotic/Dunleavy
PF - Gasol/Gibson/Mirotic
C - Noah/Bairstow
I am hopeful that McDermott will shine in the one position that the Bulls seem a bit weak at, the small forward. Against Cleveland you would see Butler switching to defend LeBron. The Bulls really have a ton of options when it comes to switching and they have a lot of players that can play well in 2 positions. Hinrich can play PG or SG. Butler and Snell can both play SG or SF. McDermott, Mirotic, and Dunleavy can play PF if the Bulls want to go small. Gibson and Gasol can both play a little bit at center.
I think the Bulls have the deepest team they have had in a long long time. They are certainly more talented and versatile. Even a few years back when they had the "bench mob" they were not this good. I would take Hinrich, Snell, Dunleavy, Mirotic, Gibson over Watson, Brewer, Korver, Gibson, Thomas.
I also see another move coming. The Bulls need a solid backup center. Not a stud, but someone that can contribute 15 minutes a night. I see the Bulls waiting for a ring chaser veteran like Okafor or Brand or I could see them trading Dunleavy and a pick for a decent backup. That is the one move I would like to see. Maybe even wait until mid-season to make sure McDermott and Mirotic can handle the SF position with a little help from Butler and Snell.
Here is my final predictions for this season. I have to make two separate ones bases on the health of Rose. I know that is cheating, but oh well.
With a healthy Rose:
60+ wins and the 1st seed in the weak East and a trip to the Finals. Rose averages a respectable 20ppg and 7apg while shooting only .430 from the floor. Gasol turns back the clock playing next to Noah and averages 18ppg and 8rpg. Noah has another stellar season marked with another 1st team all-defensive selection and 2nd in DPOY voting. McDermott has a solid rookie season averaging 11ppg while being top 5 in the league in 3p%. Mirotic has his ups and downs but averages 9ppg off the bench with at least one monster game were he scores 30+. Bulls loose in the Finals to the Spurs in 7.
Without a healthy Rose:
50+ wins and the 3rd seed with a trip to the Eastern Conference Finals. Rose's knee explodes on opening night while moving without the ball. Hinrich and Brooks fill in for him the rest of the season. Brooks averages 13ppg with 6apg. The rest of the team plays out pretty much the same as above. Bulls loose to the Cavs in the Eastern Conference Finals in 6 games.
That is all I have. Thanks.
Well, I got my wish, and now I will get to see if I was right or wrong. The Bulls have made a series of solid moves in the wake of loosing Melo. Let's take a look at these moves and what I think they can equate to.
Pau Gasol. The Bulls "big" move was to sign Gasol to a three year deal. The contract is not too steep for a proven veteran power forward with his best years behind him. Gasol took less money to join the Bulls and that is a good sign. The Bulls have a lot of depth with their bigs, so Gasol will not have to play 35+ minutes a night. I expect him to be the starter along side Noah, but He will see reduced minutes. Thibs will be able to switch in Taj when ever he needs tighter defense and bring Gasol in for some scoring. I am most excited to see the pairing of Gasol with Noah. Two bigs with the ability to have double digit assists. Should be fun to watch.
Doug McDermott The Bulls big move on draft night was to turn two picks into Doug McDermott. The Bulls have been pretty good recently making draft picks and after watching a few summer league games, it look like McBuckets has a solid future ahead of him. I am not one to drink the Kool Aid, so time will tell just how good he is. One thing that is certain is that he can score and Bulls need scoring from the outside. When the Bulls had Korver they were able to really spread the floor. I expect McDermott to be a better version of Korver in the years to come. He has the size to play inside on smaller players and he should become an average defender in Thibs' system.
Nikola Mirotic It has been a long time coming, but he is finally in the U.S. and I am very excited to watch this guy grow in the NBA. I am not expecting him to be the real deal this season. I think we will see some amazing games out of him, but likely he will be just average most of the time. What he brings is yet another player that have drain threes and he also has the ability to drive and finish. At his best he reminds me of a mix between Toni Kukoc and Hedo Turkoglu with a bit more size. I know that Hedo is not what most call a great player, but he did have a solid string of seasons back in the day. I think Mirotic could develop into a solid 3rd or 4th option of a contending team. At worst, I see him as a decent role player.
Aaron Brooks At the time of this writing the Bulls are talking with Aaron Brooks and all signs point to him signing a deal with the Bulls. This is quietly my favorite signing for the Bulls. If Rose goes down again, having Brooks and Hinrich will be a very good backup plan. Neither is great, but Brooks could be yet another PG that thrives under Thibs. Brooks brings ball handling and a great outside shot, and Hinrich brings tight defense and leadership. I think they are a nice set of backups and they both offer Tom options.
So let's take a look at what I think the starting 5 will be by midseason and their backups at each position.
PG - Rose/Hinrich/Brooks
SG - Butler/Snell/Hinrich
SF - McDermott/Mirotic/Dunleavy
PF - Gasol/Gibson/Mirotic
C - Noah/Bairstow
I am hopeful that McDermott will shine in the one position that the Bulls seem a bit weak at, the small forward. Against Cleveland you would see Butler switching to defend LeBron. The Bulls really have a ton of options when it comes to switching and they have a lot of players that can play well in 2 positions. Hinrich can play PG or SG. Butler and Snell can both play SG or SF. McDermott, Mirotic, and Dunleavy can play PF if the Bulls want to go small. Gibson and Gasol can both play a little bit at center.
I think the Bulls have the deepest team they have had in a long long time. They are certainly more talented and versatile. Even a few years back when they had the "bench mob" they were not this good. I would take Hinrich, Snell, Dunleavy, Mirotic, Gibson over Watson, Brewer, Korver, Gibson, Thomas.
I also see another move coming. The Bulls need a solid backup center. Not a stud, but someone that can contribute 15 minutes a night. I see the Bulls waiting for a ring chaser veteran like Okafor or Brand or I could see them trading Dunleavy and a pick for a decent backup. That is the one move I would like to see. Maybe even wait until mid-season to make sure McDermott and Mirotic can handle the SF position with a little help from Butler and Snell.
Here is my final predictions for this season. I have to make two separate ones bases on the health of Rose. I know that is cheating, but oh well.
With a healthy Rose:
60+ wins and the 1st seed in the weak East and a trip to the Finals. Rose averages a respectable 20ppg and 7apg while shooting only .430 from the floor. Gasol turns back the clock playing next to Noah and averages 18ppg and 8rpg. Noah has another stellar season marked with another 1st team all-defensive selection and 2nd in DPOY voting. McDermott has a solid rookie season averaging 11ppg while being top 5 in the league in 3p%. Mirotic has his ups and downs but averages 9ppg off the bench with at least one monster game were he scores 30+. Bulls loose in the Finals to the Spurs in 7.
Without a healthy Rose:
50+ wins and the 3rd seed with a trip to the Eastern Conference Finals. Rose's knee explodes on opening night while moving without the ball. Hinrich and Brooks fill in for him the rest of the season. Brooks averages 13ppg with 6apg. The rest of the team plays out pretty much the same as above. Bulls loose to the Cavs in the Eastern Conference Finals in 6 games.
That is all I have. Thanks.
