Offseason Preview: Chicago Bulls

by David Pincus
2006-06-29

The post-Jordan era finally started looking up for the Bulls. But the preseason loss of Eddy Curry left them without a legitimate Center. Even without their leading scorer the Bulls managed to have a solid season, and things are looking up for Chicago’s future.

Now Bull really emerged in the regular season. Gordon, Hinrich, Deng and Nocioni all had solid seasons. Chicago frequently alternated their starting lineup. Players like Othello Harrington would start one game and then miss the next five. Gordon in particular was off-and-on as the SG.

68 games in, the Bulls’ season looked over. The team was 29-39 and far back from the Sixers and Bucks for 8th place. Chicago had a great time to go on a run, as the Bulls finished 12-2 to push their record even and clinch a playoff birth. Nocioni and Gordon emerged as the team leaders. The Bulls, who had struggled offensively for most of the year, scored 100+ in eight of their last eleven games.

In the first round they matched up with the Miami Heat. Even though the Heat would eventually win the NBA Finals, the Bulls gave Miami a run for their money. The Bulls were quicker and more athletic, and Miami struggled to put them away. Gordon, Hinrich and Nocioni were suddenly all averaging 20+ PPG and the team was scoring in the triple-digits. They eventually lost the series 4-2, but it was a moral victory to challenge Miami as much as they did.

Now with the signing of Ben Wallace and drafting of Tyrus Thomas (not to mention next year’s first-round pick from the Knicks) things are definitely looking up for Chicago. But how much more do they have to go to really compete in the East?

Needs:

An inside-scoring presence

The Bulls had a very perimeter-oriented offense last year. Hinrich, Gordon and Nocioni are all jump shooters. Deng is too small to play Power Forward and lacks a post-up game. Songaila, Harrington, Chandler and Sweetney failed to put points on the board.

Getting Ben Wallace certainly won’t help. Assuming that they don’t get Kevin Garnett, P.J. Brown will start as the Power Forward. The Bulls don’t have a go-to-guy, and really they have a scorer-by-committee system that hurts their offense. As Detroit proved, a team can win without a main scorer as long as points come from the PF.

But Chicago’s offense will be worse next year. If Tyrus Thomas can warrant his first-round pick the Bulls could be on the level of Detroit, Miami and Cleveland. As it stands they still require a PF to have a full starting lineup. Brown is an upgrade from Malik Allen, but it shouldn’t be for more than a few points.

Chicago is very close to being a serious contender, but they’re not quite there yet. Adding Ben Wallace doesn’t hurt, as the team definitely needed a Center. But his signing does complicate things. $15 million a year is a lot to pay a guy who cannot score. As the Pistons showed with allowing Wallace to go, it will be hard to keep all the components to this Bulls’ team in Chicago. Gordon in particular has been involved in trade rumors for years. So a large $60 million contract could block future deals.

The thing with getting Wallace is that the Bulls improve an area where they didn’t really need improving. Last year the Bulls were #1 in the NBA in overall defense, and were first in opponents FG%. What the Bulls need is some direction in their offense, so adding Wallace won’t improve that.

The Bulls should be a 50-win squad next year. Realistically they aren’t up to Miami and Detroit just yet, but the Bulls could be as good as New Jersey or Cleveland. If they can add a premier Power Forward they could be labeled as far as a title contender. Until then they’ll struggle to reach a home-court advantage.

Other Articles:

Ben Wallace Signs With Bulls (7/04/06)