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Chicago Bulls 2009-2010 team breakdown By John Nguyen
08.15.2009 - Updated on 08.15.2009
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Everything on this squad starts and ends with Derrick Rose. As the most knowledgeable Bulls fan at Hoopsvibe, this is only right that I set projections for the new season for this squad. Call it “expectations.” Call it “hypothesis.” Call it “predicting.” Whatever the issue maybe, this might be categorized as a pessimistic outlook. Was the first round playoff series against Boston a fluke or signs of bigger things to come?
Hate or love him, losing Ben Gordon was a huge loss because nothing was brought in to replace his 20 points and clutch shooting. The hate for him was strong especially from the Kirk Hinrich fans. Here is an undersized 2-guard who cannot play solid defense. Then what was the point of drafting him? Picking Gordon was not a mistake, but letting him leave without getting anything back is a huge one. I know they tried to trade him, but John Paxson was usually found on the bad end so nothing was accomplished.
Point Guard: Never had Chicago got a point guard as great as this. There is nothing much to say. Rose will continue to dazzle and impress with his spectacular game. He is a lock at this position for seasons to come. Keep plugging away at improving defensive skills and the jumper. He is as good as butter.
Shooting Guard: This is where it gets tricky. Early speculations say that Kirk Hinrich might not even start. John Salmons is the likely candidate, but he does not have the ability to close out games and he’s planning to opt out next season. Hinrich might be traded as well if the deal is right. Short term, there’s a fix. In the long run, Ben Gordon’s departure will be felt. Even Derrick Rose said that he helped take the pressure off of him.
Small Forward: Will the real Luol Deng please stand up? I think he already did and got injured again in the process. The Bulls are considering switching him to power forward and having rookie James Johnson take this spot or vice versa. It is a dumb move either way as the team is trying to be creative with what they have, which reeks of quiet desperation. Deng better prove that he’s not injury prone this season. He also better show some dribbling ability and heart. Isn’t that right Mister Softee?
Power Forward: This position is a hot mess. Tyrus Thomas cannot get it together. There is no one else on the roster who is worthy for this task. Gar Foreman still cannot find the answer. This hole is the weakest link in the chain. Without a scoring power forward, Derrick Rose’s potential is not fully realized.
Center: Joakim Noah is the long term center for Chicago. He is a budding great defensive player and I do not see anyone else replacing him. Noah is their defensive ace. Think of him as a jacked up super steroid version of Bill Cartwright. Yes, he’s that great. He stole the ball, dribble full blast (better than Luol Deng), and slammed the thing on Paul Pierce’s face. He did that.
The bench is solid with Brad Miller, Kirk Hinrich, and Tyrus Thomas. The glaring weakness still lies at power forward. Carlos Boozer’s name holds on to some kind of relevancy and Chicago faithful fans pray for Chris Bosh. Amare Stoudemire has become a sort of an afterthought. Inside Bulls’ inner circles, rookie James Johnson’s attitude has been questioned. Supposedly he is not motivated to work harder and gained some weight. You’re not off to a good impression, rookie. Way to go.
Realistically, Chicago makes the playoffs as the 5 – 8 seed. If nothing bad happens to Rose and they land Boozer (as of this writing, he’s still available) in grand fashion, Chicago should be a top 4 seed. Most likely that will not happen as the Bulls roll in as a struggling 6th seed.
[image:http://www.flickr.com/photos/rmtip21/3769504523/] |
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Posted by
J. Nguyen
on 08.21.2009 | J. Noah is great, guys. There’s still more to his game. He’s going to be a great defensive player. He gives Dwight Howard a hard time so that’s already a very promising sign of an impact player. His annoyance just adds another dimension to that. Chi-Town needs a scoring power forward to pair up with the defensive center.
Ballerking, I appreciate your write up. You are correct about this group being the worst group of clutch players except for Rose. I will also throw in Salmons. He’s ok in the clutch, too. Just not Ben Gordon good. . | Posted by
on 08.17.2009 | The Bulls can be all right. They should compete. We will find out if Hinrich can play the 2 I always thought he should. Salmons will be good. Noah will continue learning from Miller. We will find out if Deng is as fragile as he looks... Tyrus made great strides last year, if he still wants to work, the Bulls may surprise a lot of people. They won’t win the division, but they will lay a very good foundation for a great season the following year . | Posted by
on 08.17.2009 | I think Al Harrington would be nice, he kind of reminds me of Antawn Jamison they have a similar game and their stats are pretty similar too, but I also don’t think we give him too many years. I still think Joakim can develop an offensive game and average 14 points and 10 rebounds a game, i don’t think he will be an offensive threat but maybe he can give you something inside if you work with him. . | Posted by
Snika
on 08.17.2009 | I like the Al Harrington take... he might fit in well, with Gordon’s offense gone. And they could probably get him cheap. Just don’t give him too many years, they need to keep their cap down for another upgrade next year. . | Posted by
on 08.17.2009 | they should have retained gordon . | Posted by
soldier345
on 08.16.2009 | I cant lie I like the bulls. I think Rose, Hinrich salmons Joakim and Miller is a solid Five! The bench is the problem I know the bulls are constantly kickicking there self in the a-------for not drafting Lamarcus Aldridge over Thomas.. damn that was dumb! I think they could have gotten something back for Ben Gordon. They need a legit post player in chicago Boozer would be great if they could trade him for hinrich! But if they cant get Boozer atless get Al harrington. I know he doesnt really play D that well but thats were Noah will come into play because Noah will never be a offensive threat ever! . | Posted by
on 08.15.2009 | Bulls get the 7th spot at best, unless they get boozer. Bulls fans prayyyyyyy . | Posted by
COURTNEY
on 08.15.2009 | BUMP HOW JOAKIM NOAH CAN PLAY THAT DUDE IS TO FINE . | Posted by
on 08.15.2009 | I do think Joakim can become an offensive player, he’s got a better chance of becoming one than Tyson Chandler ever will. He can score better than Tyson i feel, i think the bulls should try to work with him so he can develop a post-up game which can help his offensive game. I notice he bulk up that’s a plus, but all he need is some post-up skills. I do think having Brad Miller is a good thing and i don’t have a problem with him starting, but he is kind of broken down and don’t post-up as much as you want him to do. I just hope that the bulls can find someone who they can dump the ball to for easy basket. I Also hope that derrick rose will make his team better like Chris Pual and Steve Nash did. . | Posted by
ballerkingn
on 08.15.2009 | Spot on for the most part esp the deng stuff. I too call him mr softy and wish we didn’t give him that stupid contract and instead invested in ben who actually helps you win games unlike deng who just there to be a witness,it seems. I do though disagree though on tyrus a little he just needs to find his niche or him and rose need to learn some plays together,because not for nothing some of tyrus poor play comes from rose and the other pg play and vision before him. I bet if cris paul had him they wouldn’t think twice about trading him. Look at how good paul made a player we said some of the same things about with the same type of game as tyrus in chandler(who like tyrus i feel came into the lg as a high schooler) and how he played with a good passing pg. Something tyrus has NEVER HAD!! rose isn’t there yet but can get there hopefully as soon as this season, and if puts in the extra work needed he and rose can emerge into a solid tandem. Now my biggest concern with this team is SG,and some late game situtions when a 3pt is needed. I still feel we should have paid the fee to get a 2nd round pick and got us a sg (there was a lot of good ones that feel beside blair who i wanted). And rose shooting better improve because if we need a 3 to get us to tie we are screwed because we have prob the worst bunch of clutch players(besides rose) now with the lost of BG. Just my thoughts. . | Posted by
on 08.14.2009 | not gonna even make the playoffs . | Posted by
anjo
on 08.14.2009 | why not put brad miller on center, noah on power forward?? . | Posted by
Snika
on 08.14.2009 | I don’t think Joahkim is the player you think he is. He has toughness, but that will only get him so far. Name an actual b-ball skill that he holds. However, with a backcourt of Rose, Salmons, Hinrich, Pargo, and Deng... I can’t imagine them having a bad year. Brad Miller should start at the 5, and they need to trade Tyrus before everyone realizes that he was a bust. . | Posted by
on 08.14.2009 | I think the bulls will do ok. I’m hoping that Joakim, will develop an offensive game which can help the bulls inside. I think that rookie James Johnson will do well for the team. I do feel they need an all-star type of player to be an elite team, but just with the players we have now i can see us being a 5th seed or maybe higher, depends how well Rose plays and if he make the players around him better like we expecting him to do. . |
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