Tumultuous 2016 Draws to Close

Like with much of the world, 2016 wasn't a very kind year to the Bulls.  When it seemed like necessary changes were finally going to be made, they didn't really happen.  So the end of the year doesn't feel much differently from the beginning.  Yet this is still the day to reflect on everything significant that happened and that's why we're here today.

With Fred Hoiberg inheriting virtually the same roster Tom Thibodeau had the year before, the Bulls struggled to meet the demands of Hoiball, yet remained in contention for the final playoff spot in the East until the season was nearly over.  But it wasn't fun to watch and even the good things that happened had strings attached.  Jimmy Butler was named to his second All-Star Game, but an injury kept him from playing, so Pau Gasol took his place.  Though Derrick Rose appeared in 66 games, his most since his MVP campaign, he still didn't play like the superstar he was pre-ACL tear except for a few flashes here and there.

All this, along with Butler attempting to seize leadership from Rose and Joakim Noah, whose season ended early with a shoulder injury, led to a 42-40 finish and no playoffs for the first time since 2008.  Calls to get rid of everyone came from everywhere.  When Rose was traded to New York and it became heavily rumored that Butler would be dealt on draft night, it looked like the Bulls would indeed go in that direction.  With Noah and Gasol leaving as free agents and Gar Forman saying the team needed "to get younger and more athletic", the fuel to the rebuilding fire continued to be poured on.

But everything was doused quickly when the Bulls signed Rajon Rondo and Dwyane Wade, which would have been perfect if this was 2010.  But it's six years later and both have aged considerably since then.  Young players were added up until the regular season started, but none generated much excitement.  A veteran starting lineup to go with a young bench baffled many people as it seems like the makeup of a team stuck in the middle, which is exactly where the Bulls were when the previous season ended.

With over 40 percent of the new campaign in the books, the new Bulls are as mired in mediocrity as ever, the worst place to be in professional sports.  Butler and Wade are reliable game in and game out, but the rest of the Bulls are hit and miss game in and game out.  Since starting at 11-7, they've fallen to one game below .500 and suddenly, there are reports that Hoiberg's job might be in jeopardy.  But don't let that distract you from the fact that this is ultimately a team constructed by Forman and John Paxson, though there's no indication that Jerry Reinsdorf is fed up with either of them.

Perhaps it's only fitting that a year filled with divided politics and lots of celebrity deaths among other things includes a Bulls team that hasn't moved in one direction or the other since we last rang in a New Year.  You're sick of everything else in the world bringing you down and this is only adding to the frustration.  Unless you're a Cubs fan, a Trump supporter or both, this likely won't be a year you remember fondly, and maybe not even then.  Shouldn't we at least have a basketball team that knows what the heck it's doing?

Maybe Reinsdorf will take how positively folks are reacting to his White Sox going the rebuilding route and decide the Bulls will pick a solid direction during their next offseason as well.  Had Forman truly backed up his "younger and more athletic" comment, this talk about the franchise being stagnant might not even be happening.  For now, he's stuck with young players on the bench whom you don't really want to build your team around.  If you can't replace players quickly, get some better talent evaluation in your front office and begin the proper process.

Before wrapping this up, I want to thank everybody who came back to this blog after I temporarily jumped ship to Chicago Bulls Confidential.  Yes, it's not as big a brand as ChicagoNow, but I find this setting more intimate.  It's something we can share together and if you like what I write, it would be nice of you to share my work with others.  I highly value my audience.

I've had enough of this drama of this calendar year.  2017 can hopefully only be an improvement.  But first, they can end 2016 on a high note by defeating the Milwaukee Bucks tonight.  See you all on the other side of this big day.

Pacers Outpace Bulls

While my girlfriend and I were driving to Friday's game against the Indiana Pacers, Marc Stein of ESPN reported that Fred Hoiberg is on the hot seat and only the guaranteed money on his five-year, $25 million contract is keeping the Bulls from making a change.  After the game, Hoiberg downplayed the talk, though that's not going to keep it from subsiding.  It will just continue after the Bulls lost, 111-101.

The Pacers threatened to blow it open early after making their first seven field-goal attempts.  But Indiana missed a bunch of layups and had trouble handling the ball, allowing the Bulls to keep pace and even chip away at the lead.  This continued until the game was tied at 95 midway through the fourth quarter and again at 97 two minutes later.  But the Bulls couldn't find that one basket to give them the lead and went cold, allowing the Pacers to end the game on a 14-4 run.

Paul George showed off his value with a game-high 32 points, 11 during the aforementioned game-ending run, on 10-of-20 shooting from the field and making all nine of his free throws.  Jeff Teague, who gave the Bulls plenty of fits in Atlanta before he was traded this summer, did it again by recording a career-high 17 assists.  The rest of the Pacers' starting frontcourt benefited as Thaddeus Young scored 17 and Myles Turner had 15.  Glen Robinson III also reached double figures with 12 points and completed the double-double with 10 rebounds.

Not surprising for the Bulls was Jimmy Butler leading them with 25 points and Dwyane Wade not far behind with 20.  Surprising was Crisitano Felicio's first career double-double (12 points, 12 rebounds), which will only make his strongest supporters scream even louder for him to play more meaningful minutes, though foul trouble in the first half kept him from playing longer during that time.  Michael Carter-Williams earned the right to start the second half over Rajon Rondo, who was benched the final 24 minutes, and made the most of his increased playing time with 12 points and eight boards.  Doug McDermott and Taj Gibson each scored 10.

You gotta give the Bulls credit for not rolling over when they got down in a hurry.  That desire not to be out of games has kept this frustrating season more entertaining than it has any right to be.  But their sloppy play out of the gate and running numerous offensive sets in crunch time that just didn't work did them in.  This was a prime example of how streaky, both good and bad, these Bulls can be.

The Bulls are 16-17 and deserve every bit to be under .500.  The offense isn't that great and the defense tends to get beaten at the worst times.  They give themselves plenty of chances and are often successful at them, but other than the two wins earlier this week, it doesn't happen much in the clutch.  It's up to Hoiberg and his staff to get the players from being on the precipice of needed wins to getting over that hump required to win.

The focus now shifts to Saturday's New Year's Eve date with the Milwaukee Bucks.  At the very least, the Bulls can end 2016 at exactly .500, which would be fitting for this group.  But the Bucks blew them out on both ends of a home-and-home earlier this month and playing the back end of a back-to-back won't make it any easier against this younger, more athletic opponent.  Sound familiar, GarPax?

R.J. Hunter Waived

I know, I've been away from here longer than I should be, but that happens when you start working one more day each week.  I've missed opportunities to recap games such as Wednesday's, which ended when Jimmy Butler beat the Brooklyn Nets at the buzzer.  But that's not why I'm here today.

The Bulls made a very minor move on Thursday, but one that reduced their roster size to 14.  They requested waivers on R.J. Hunter, who played in three games and collected one rebound over nine minutes during that span.  Not even time with the Windy City Bulls could improve his standing here.  Now, he finds himself looking for new work.

Hunter, as you may recall, was added to the team just before the season tipped off.  But the Georgia State product who caused his head coach and father Ron to fall off his chair during March Madness in 2015 never found his footing in Chicago.  Frankly, he probably didn't have much upside to begin with.  It remains to be seen where he lands next, but the D-League is probably his best bet.

Hunter is 23, so he's got plenty left in the tank.  But how high can his ceiling go?  If the Bulls, known to move the Jerian Grants and Paul Zipsers of the world back and forth between Chicago and Hoffman Estates, can't find much promise with him, perhaps he's not destined to last in the NBA.  But he has every right to show he belongs with the best and at his age, he'll have more chances to make it as a professional basketball player.

As for the Bulls, they already have enough trouble getting every young player into games each night.  With the roster being completely healthy for the first time since Halloween, it perhaps allowed the front office to reevaluate the situation and thus, determine that Hunter wasn't going to get enough chances here.  If they were really sold on him, they probably wouldn't have waited until after the preseason to give him a shot.  Whatever the case may be, it's the life of a professional basketball player, which is constantly prone to change.

I'll conclude this post by sharing a poster made especially for this blog.  When I find more time, probably after the holidays, I'll look for a way it can be displayed on the home page permanently.  My girlfriend Audrey gave it to me for Christmas and I'll actually be taking her to tomorrow's road game, her first Bulls game, against the Indiana Pacers.  My recap won't be up until late, but try to wait around for it before you go to bed, okay?

Bulls Back to Good Basketball Against Pistons

It's amazing what 2 1/2 hours of practice can do to a team that's struggled of late like the Bulls.  Fred Hoiberg felt it was merited Sunday after 11 straight lackluster quarters that led to three straight losses.  It immediately paid off Monday with a dominant 113-82 win over the Detroit Pistons.  The victory bumped them back above .500 at 14-13.

This game belonged to the Bulls from the opening tip.  They scored 12 of the game's first 14 points and matched their 69-point total from Friday's loss at halftime.  The lead was 34 at the end of the third quarter, allowing Hoiberg to rest his starters for the entire fourth.  In short, Detroit never had a chance.

Seven Bulls, including all five starters, scored in double figures.  Jimmy Butler did the most damage with 19 points on 6-of-7 shooting from the field and making all six free throws.  Taj Gibson had 16 and made all eight of his shots.  Rajon Rondo came within two rebounds of a triple-double on a night he had 10 points and 14 assists.

Off the bench, Nikola Mirotic and Doug McDermott each scored 13 and shot 50 percent from the field.  It was the best they could have hoped for in a season they have struggled to find their footing.  Then again, the same could be said for the entire reserve unit.  But as the two non-starters who typically get the biggest workload, the others can take a cue from them and these types of games can only inspire confidence to play at a higher level.

The Bulls' starters have the talent to compete with anyone in the league, especially those that are struggling.  Granted, the Bulls are closer to the bottom of the Central than they should be, but Monday showed why they're better than the slump they just showed.  More slumps will regrettably happen throughout the year (that's just how it is with this team), which will make games like this easy to savor.  More importantly, it will get them in the playoffs, which is the main goal for this team after missing out last year.

The season will continue Wednesday against the Washington Wizards.  For some reason, this is a team that's had the Bulls' number for a few years now.  But the Bulls made progress by defeating them at the United Center on Nov. 12, so they have a chance to put any further talk about their inability to beat them to rest.  Then again, this team tends to pose more questions than answers, so another letdown is not out of the question, but there's no reason not to think positively after the game we just saw.

How Low The Bulls Go

I was working during the Bulls' back-to-back clunkers with the Milwaukee Bucks, but that doesn't mean I don't know how bad they were.  One of the things about my new job is I have to break during my first five hours.  On Thursday and Friday, I chose the start of the Bulls games to take them.  Despite only being able to watch the first quarter closely both times, they were all I needed to see.

I'll get to why in a second, but to add to all the drama, Nikola Mirotic missed Friday's mandatory walkthrough and could be fined.  This came one night after he received the first "DNP - Coach's Decision" of his career.  While he apologized, he was still confused as to why Bobby Portis had taken his spot in the rotation.  It's not like Portis has performed much better than Mirotic has of late, but with a qualifying offer on the table for next year, don't be shocked if Mirotic is done in Chicago after this year.

But the Mirotic chapter looks rather small compared to the bigger issues facing the Bulls.  After a nice start to the season, they are now 13-13, having lost six of their past eight games.  They are becoming the team many like me were in denial about during the summer:  mediocre and right in the middle of the NBA.  It shows how wrong and indecisive Gar Forman and John Paxson have been in their decision-making.

Yeah, about that.  Remember when Forman said the Bulls were going to get "younger" and "more athletic", only to stop just short of that when it came to the core?  Doing more talk than walk on the matter came back to haunt him this week when bot the Bucks AND Tom Thibodeau's Minnesota Timberwolves beat his team with the very makeup he said he would pursue.  Meanwhile, Forman's young guys, all on the bench, have made little to no progress nearly two months into the season.

I'll give a Christmas cookie to anyone who can tell me with a straight face one young player who not only has improved under Fred Hoiberg this year, but is a viable franchise building block for years to come.  Otherwise, you'll have to accept that Hoiberg is the anti-Thibodeau in that he doesn't maximize anybody's game.  Forman felt he could and decided to give him a five-year contract that's currently in year two. 

Christmas Eve has historically been an exit day for Bulls coaches just not living up to expectations.  Just ask Tim Floyd and Scott Skiles.  We are exactly one week from that day and there's speculation that in the event Hoiberg goes then or on any day, Forman becomes a scapegoat and goes with him.  It would be nice for this organization to hold people accountable and if the Bulls follow their history, it can happen sooner than later.

The worst thing about these past few games is that the Bulls have looked completely disinterested on both ends.  The offense is out of sync and not making smart decisions.  The defense has let anybody and everybody carve it up like Swiss cheese, showing little resistance in the half-court and letting itself get beat convincingly on the break.  The players can talk all they want about improving, communicating and all that, but until they actually show that they care by their actions, they'll get booed off the United Center court as they were Friday.

Many are calling this the low point of Hoiberg's tenure and it's hard to argue against it.  To get back above .500, they'll have to beat the Detroit Pistons on Monday.  Even if they win, the issues with the team's makeup will remain.  And they won't change until the organization decides to actually build a foundation we can all be proud to call our own.

Thibs, Timberwolves Beat Bulls

The above iconic image of Tom Thibodeau during his time with the Bulls has been used many times on social media since it came to be.  It showed up plenty of times last year when the Bulls were on their way to missing the playoffs.  On Tuesday, it made a triumphant return as Thibodeau's Minnesota Timberwolves came from behind to win, 99-94, at the United Center.

Things started well when the Bulls exploited a thin Timberwolves defense down low.  They led by as much as 21 in the second quarter before the visitors, who entered tied with Dallas for the worst record in the NBA, began to look like the team people expected at the start of the year.  Their youth and athleticism, the very thing Gar Forman and John Paxson backtracked on during the offseason, played a large part in making up the entire deficit and eventually, taking the lead.  The Bulls, who scored 38 points in the first quarter, became stagnant on offense and were badly beat frequently on defense to complete the NBA's biggest collapse so far this season.

For the second time in 10 days, the Bulls lost to a team entering with the league's worst record.  Take out the first quarter and it was ugly from start to finish.  They were outscored 77-56 in the final three quarters and shot 24 percent from the field.  And during one stretch, they made just one of 12 3-point attempts.

All five Timberwolves starters scored in double figures.  Zach LaVine led them with 24 points and Andrew Wiggins just trailed him with 23.  There were 16 points apiece from Karl-Anthony Towns and Gorgui Dieng, whom the Bulls passed on in the 2013 draft for Tony Snell.  In typical Thibodeau fashion, no Minnesota starter played less than 34 minutes and on this night, it didn't hurt the young team.

Jimmy Butler was the game's top scorer with 27 points and came within a rebound of a double-double.  Robin Lopez had 14, but just four in the second half, though he did get on highlight reels with some emphatic blocks (finishing with 4).  Dwyane Wade totaled 12 on a night he wasn't particularly sharp (4 of 13 from the field) and found himself ejected in the final seconds for clapping in referee Ben Taylor's face.  Taj Gibson added 10.

There's no way this should have turned out the way it did, but Thibodeau's crew had extra incentive to play extra hard when it fell in an early hole.  Meanwhile, the Bulls again played down to their competition and couldn't find another wind once they fell out of the first one.  The shooting was putrid and the defense either collapsed frequently or couldn't get back on fast breaks.  No team can play a game like this and expect to come out on top.

The Bulls will lick their wounds Wednesday before playing a nationally televised road game against the Milwaukee Bucks, the first of a home-and-home.  Rajon Rondo will hopefully be back from a sprained ankle.  But it won't matter if they don't play those 48 minutes of intensity.  I always to channel the late Norm Van Lier, but it becomes necessary when the worst of the NBA is besting what should be an above-average Bulls team and Thibs is laughing all the way home.

Bulls Lead Spurs Wire-to-Wire

It's been a trademark for the Bulls these past few years:  lay an egg against lesser teams, then show up like it's the game of their lives against the heavyweights, especially if the game is nationally televised.  For over a week now, the Bulls have not disappointed in that regard.  They lost to Dallas and the Lakers, but beat Cleveland on ESPN.  On Thursday, they faced the San Antonio Spurs, undefeated on the road through 13 games, in a game broadcast on TNT.  Staying true to form, they led throughout in a 95-91 win.

Although it was mostly the Bulls, who led by as much as 18, controlling the game, they faced a stiff challenge in the second half from the Spurs, desperate to keep their perfect road record alive.  They got to as close as four with 3:24 to play on a 3-pointer from Pau Gasol.  But the Bulls made their free throws and cracked down on rebounding on both ends.  It was enough to finish the Spurs off and cause Gregg Popovich to not pull any punches afterward.

All five starters scored in double figures.  Dwyane Wade led with 20 points, nine coming from the free-throw line.  Despite not scoring in the first half, Jimmy Butler finished with 13.  Twelve points each came from Taj Gibson, Robin Lopez and Rajon Rondo, who finished within one assist of a triple-double.

Despite the Bulls' tendency to show up more prepared when the national spotlight is on them, they can always use signature wins and this was their second in less than a week.  While they won't contend for a championship, they have enough talent that will get them over the hump against the best of the league.  That's why quality opponents can't take them for granted.  Though they've beaten good teams regularly in past years, this is a different team that can beat others in a way not executed properly much until now.

The Bulls will take a day to savor the win before returning to action Saturday against the Miami Heat.  Naturally, this has a chance to be a letdown after a big such as the one Thursday.  The Lakers beat them not long after they did the same to them in Los Angeles.  They'll try to avoid a repeat since they already beat Wade's former team in his return to South Beach a month ago.

Perhaps a key will be to keep teams off the charity stripe as the Bulls have been.  They rank second in the NBA with 18.1 free-throw attempts allowed per game and tied for third with 17.7 fouls committed.  That trend kept up Thursday when the Spurs got to the line just five times.  If they do that again Saturday, they'll make a bad team even worse.

Dominating of the Guards: Trail Blazers Beat Bulls

Monday was an eventful night for me at the United Center.  I got to shake Bill Wennington's hand before the game against the Portland Trail Blazers.  Jimmy Butler hit a 3-pointer as time expired.  Too bad it wasn't a one-possession contest then because otherwise, the Bulls might not have lost 112-110.

The teams took turns being scoring the most points in every other quarter and their respective play showed.  The Blazers just happened to do it in the even quarters.  While a lot of the game's direction had to do with the stars on both teams living up to expectations and sloppy defense on both ends, it came down to who had the better supporting cast.  With Rajon Rondo serving a one-game suspension for conduct detrimental to the team, Portland had the slightly more Oscar-worthy performance and deserved the win.

Damian Lillard did the most damage for the Blazers by scoring 30 points, including 11 in the final 5:55.  CJ McCollum, Lillard's backcourt mate, was close behind with 24.  Allen Crabbe came off the bench to pour in 17.  It was certainly unexpected from a player averaging 9.2 points per game, but also turned out to be necessary for the visitors.

In my first game seeing Dwyane Wade in person since his rookie year, he didn't disappoint, leading all scorers with 34 points.  Butler, taking more a backseat to the future Hall of Famer in this game, had an impressive 26.  Robin Lopez camped down low to grab 14 rebounds.  While Nikola Mirotic scored 18 off the bench, he also had to play hero ball in several situations and most of the time, he was unsuccessful.

I've been high on Jerian Grant this season, especially after he lit up the Blazers on the circus trip, but he and Isaiah Canaan were major disappointments while filling in for Rondo.  They combined to shoot 5 for 18 and record a plus/minus of -4.  It's clear why Rondo usually runs the offense.  Maybe the offense doesn't flow as well with him out there, but he can still put up stats, which in some cases, makes all the difference.

The Bulls don't have quick guards as talented as the Blazers and when you take out a veteran like Rondo, that only hurts.  A defense that qualifies as average this season won't be seen as that for long if it doesn't limit easy field goals.  The bleeding stopped for a little bit when Butler defended Lillard to start the second half, but that effectiveness ended when Evan Turner started converting on opportunities during a 10-point night.  While scoring might be up for the Bulls this year, they'll lose to equal or superior offensive teams more often if they can't take away lanes or shut their stars down.

The schedule dictates the Bulls, now losers of three of four, have to rebound quickly as they travel to Auburn Hills, Michigan for a Tuesday game against the Detroit Pistons.  Will Wade be as effective in the second game of a back-to-back?  Can the defense do a better job guarding Kentavious Caldwell-Pope up top than Lillard on Monday?  They have no choice, but the beauty of the NBA is that redemption can come quickly at times.

Besting the Best: Bulls Top Cavaliers

The circus involving LeBron James making good on his bet with Dwyane Wade was regrettably a bigger story than Friday's actual game against the Cleveland Cavaliers.  Even my official return to this blog isn't immune from a Cubs championship mention.  But don't let that distract you from the fact that the Bulls beat the defending world champions 111-105.

The Bulls trailed 33-30 after the first quarter, but otherwise for a good portion of the evening.  They played tough defense and took advantage of full-court opportunities and second chances.  Even as the Cavaliers made one final late push, the hosts held their ground and weren't about to let a night of hard work go for naught.  They weathered the storm and the fans at the United Center collected their Big Macs.

All five Bulls starters scored in double figures, led by Jimmy Butler's 26 points in his 12th straight game with 20 or more.  Wade was the perfect Robin to Butler's Batman with 24.  Taj Gibson was perfect from the field in the first half and finished with a season-high 23 points.  Rajon Rondo recorded his first triple-double with the Bulls:  15 points, 11 rebounds and 12 assists.

This game was said to be a measuring stick for how the Bulls stack up against the champs.  Don't take that at face value though.  This was the second of a back-to-back for the Cavs and this was also their third straight defeat.  The Bulls just happened to catch Cleveland at the right time.

That said, the Bulls sent a message that it's likely LeBron will have to go through them once again if he wants to get back to the Finals.  While he hasn't lost to them yet, they can present a challenge. This time, they have the league's best current player's BFF and he's made a huge difference in changing things for the better.  Maybe it won't be enough for LeBron to finally go down, but like this season, such a playoff series can at least be entertaining.

Wade will stay behind while his teammates travel Saturday to play the Dallas Mavericks.  As thrilling as the Bulls have been thus far, Dirk's crew is just as disappointing.  It doesn't help that he's dealing with a sore Achilles tendon.  The Bulls would be happy to take as close to a gift win as possible though.

I'm Back

So that was a short break, huh? You're probably wondering why I'm back here instead of at Chicago Bulls Confidential. The answer is quite simple.

This week, I started my first full-time job at Shaw Media as a copy editor and page designer. Bulls Confidential is hosted on ChicagoNow, which is owned by tronc. As Shaw and tronc are competitors in the same market, it was no longer possible to write for a blog hosted on a site that happened to be owned by my now former employer. I am still able to blog independently, so I decided to return to where I once wrote.

While I'll miss my colleagues at Bulls Confidential, it also feels liberating in a sense because I get to write for myself once again. And I can do it while following a Bulls team that is much better than it was a year ago. At 10-7, the Bulls are second only to Cleveland in the Central and third in the East. Jimmy Butler and Dwyane Wade have done a fine job getting them to this point.

The Bulls will face Cleveland at home Friday, my first day off since beginning at Shaw, and that's when I intend to continue writing in earnest. I'm happy this small, but devoted readership will be able to read my thoughts on my site once again. And to any Bulls Confidential readers who have followed me here and didn't know me before, welcome. I guarantee you'll find my thoughts about the team as relevant and important as anyone who does this on their own time.

Important Announcement Regarding Blog's Future

If this were any other day, I'd be elaborating on minor Bulls news that broker earlier.  The Michael Jordan statue will soon return to its permanent location, though the construction by the United Center will render it inaccessible for half the upcoming season.  Jimmy Butler and Nikola Mirotic will be opponents in Friday's U.S.-Spain Olympic semifinal, so at least one Bull is guaranteed to medal in Rio.  But if I go on about these things, I'll bury the real reason I wanted to speak to you today.

For the past five seasons, since the 2011 NBA lockout ended in fact, I've given my personal take on every major issue facing the Bulls on this blog.  While my job has affected the number of games I've been able to recap each year, I feel I've done a sufficient job keeping up.  It's been a true labor of love that I've kept going even though the readership numbers have been less than impressive virtually all of the time.

As any journalist knows, low readership means less exposure.  It's even more difficult to make yourself stand out when there are many other blogs like yours, plenty of which are written by minds who have greater knowledge and understanding of the subject matter than you.  Obviously, it's a frustrating predicament, though not uncommon by any means.  So sometimes, you need a push by way of an established brand.

That said, I would like to announce that, with the blessing of Chicago Tribune sports editor Joe Knowles, I am joining the team of Chicago Bulls Confidential, a ChicagoNow blog.  They just had a change in leadership and were looking for new writers.  I pitched some posts on this blog to new editor Mark Karantzoulis and just yesterday, he offered me the position.  I won't be getting paid, so the only difference in my case, other than attracting more readers, is taking the bulk of my Bulls writing there.

What does this mean for Grabbing the Bull Horns?  Even I don't know.  It will probably depend on how things go at the new gig.  But I do know this blog will likely be deprioritized.

I'm not sure how many other people are coming to Bulls Confidential, but it can be sure most, if not all of them will be lining up to talk about the games.  If I'm able to talk about a game, but someone else is scheduled to recap it, I'll come back here and spill my thoughts as I always have.  This is all speculation though, so don't take it as gospel.

I want to thank everybody who has taken the time to read Grabbing the Bull Horns these past four-and-a-half years.  While this isn't goodbye to Blogger, it's my way of saying we need to lessen our contact for awhile.  Please come hang with me at the next gig so you can see how much I'm sure to improve as a writer, both in general and about basketball.  And until I return to this space right here, go Bulls!

Hyping the Schedule

While Jimmy Butler is busy helping the U.S. men's basketball team go for its third straight Olympic gold, the NBA is conducting business as usual.  In the case of Thursday, that meant releasing the 2016-17 schedule.  And the Bulls had enough of an interesting offseason to drum up interest in them once more after missing the playoffs last year.  It's so high, they'll make 34 national TV appearances.

Following a preseason few really care about unless your name is Tom Thibodeau, the Bulls will begin meaningful action Oct. 27 against the Boston Celtics at the United Center.  That will be two days after the season kicks off, so they'll have some extra time to prepare.  For the seventh straight year, the Bulls will play on Christmas Day, this time in San Antonio against Pau Gasol's Spurs.  Those are the two games everyone looks forward to each year, but here are five others that many agree will hold particularly high interest.

Nov. 4 vs. New York Knicks:  Do I really need to explain why this is notable except utter the names Derrick Rose and Joakim Noah?  The schedule makers got it right by having the two best players from the 2011 conference finalists face their old team in Chicago first and early on.  Noah is expected to receive a warm ovation, but the real question is how will the crowd respond to Rose?  Regardless, emotions should run high for them as well as the fans and that should result in some memorable basketball.

Nov. 10 at Miami Heat:  Again, the makers did the right thing by having Dwyane Wade return to South Beach early and in the teams' first meeting.  American Airlines Arena, notorious for having smaller crowds in the regular season, is sure to sell out in a tribute to the best player in Heat history.  Wade will definitely get the same positive crowd reaction Michael Jordan got whenever he returned to Chicago in a Wizards uniform.  It might be awkward to see Pat Riley though after how this summer played out.

Dec. 2 vs. Cleveland Cavaliers:  As long as LeBron James is in top basketball form, this will always be an intriguing match-up.  Here, the teams will play each other for the first time.  You always want to know how well you stack up against the defending champs, especially just over a month into the season.  Of lesser note, this also marks the Chicago return of Mike Dunleavy.

Dec. 13 vs. Minnesota Timberwolves:  By this time, we'll have an idea of what kind of team Thibodeau's bunch will be.  If that quality young talent responds well to his coaching style, they'll be an exciting group and Thibodeau will be all to eager to display that in Chicago.  If Gar Forman and John Paxson are anywhere near the United Center that night, they'll have more guts than people often give them credit for.  Expect Thibodeau to receive a nice ovation from the fans.

Feb. 8 at Golden State Warriors:  The first meeting between the Bulls and the NBA's newest super-team will come at a time when everyone should know where their seasons are headed.  With Kevin Durant in the mix, the Warriors should approach the 73-9 season they had last year.  The Bulls, if all goes well, should be in the middle of the Eastern Conference playoff race.  This probably means a Bulls loss is imminent here, but the team has been known to surprise when we least expect it.

Naturally, other plots and subplots will emerge throughout the season, but at the moment, these are what we most have to look forward to.  The three-and-a-half months before it all begins to play out can be torture, but patience is a virtue.  That's plenty of time for other narratives to form.  Will you be ready for them?

Summer Champs

No, there won't be a rally in Grant Park and it's unlikely the United Center will get a new banner.  You could also say the Summer League doesn't mean squat as it's made up of rookies, players going into their second and third years and guys who will never see meaningful NBA action.  Still, you can't help but be encouraged by what the Bulls did in Las Vegas, which was run the table.

In Monday's meeting between Tom Thibodeau's past and present, the Bulls won the Las Vegas Summer League championship by defeating the Minnesota Timberwolves 84-82 in overtime.  Denzel Valentine tied it with a 3-pointer with 0.2 seconds left in regulation.  He followed that with a game-winning buzzer beater.  It certainly got the attention of Dwyane Wade.

There was more than Valentine's clutch play in the final that got people's attention though.  Bobby Portis wrapped up an All-NBA Summer League First Team selection with 26 points and 10 rebounds.  Jerian Grant became the final's MVP by scoring 24 to go with 10 boards and five assists.  Cristiano Felicio's 12 points on 6-of-8 shooting from the field topped off a league performance in which he shot 75 percent.

These guys make up a small, yet meaningful portion of the roster.  Most of the time, they won't be playing the most important minutes, especially not all together.  Even so, you need players to weather the time when the stars can't be on the floor.  There's at least 48 minutes in every game and you can't expect your top guys to play them all.

What if somebody gets hurt or in foul trouble?  You just saw the players who can answer those calls.  Although they would be playing against far superior talent to what they just saw, they just showed they have to potential to stick around the NBA long-term.  Even if a lot of them are raw, they could be making plenty of noise in the future, even if it's not necessarily with the Bulls.

But this is an organization that invests lots of time in its draft picks and international free agents.  And if this is any indication, the Bulls have a solid foundation built.  With a little more time and experience, they could blossom into something very special.  If they won't be stars, they can at least be solid supporting characters.

The attention now shifts to a real period of relaxation before training camp opens in a couple of months.  We should also pray that Jimmy Butler doesn't get hurt while with the Olympic team.  If he can avoid the Zika virus too, that would be great.  Here's to everyone just getting through the rest of the summer in one piece.

Arrivederci Aaron

The Bulls haven't been short of news the past few days.  The death of Nate Thurmond, one of the NBA's 50 Greatest Players who played for them late in his career, gave cause to reflect.  Making the Las Vegas Summer League championship game with a perfect record gives cause for hope.  And Monday's news about Aaron Brooks is a reminder to let the past be past.

Two years with the Bulls officially ended when Brooks signed a one-year contract with the Indiana Pacers.  Over his two years, Brooks averaged 9.6 points and 2.9 assists while shooting 41.4 percent from the field and 81.5 percent on free throws.  Most of that time was spent backing up Derrick Rose.

Brooks might best be remembered as having a decent regular season in 2014-15, but dropping off big time in the playoffs.  His scoring average between those two parts of the season decreased from 11.6 to 4.5.  His assists went from 3.2 to 0.9.  Just when it seemed like he was following C.J. Watson, Nate Robinson and D.J. Augustin in the line of quality backup point guards, he simply became one of a number of Bulls who couldn't keep the team from missing the playoffs.

While Brooks might be missed as a person, he didn't really give cause for strong feelings as a player.  That's why it's better to look forward to what Jerian Grant can do off the bench.  It's certainly a departure from the veterans the Bulls have taken off the scrap heap in recent years.  Talk about a sure sign of progress.

Brooks deserves to be wished well going forward.  He'll be in a situation with the Pacers in which he'll compete with Jeff Teague, Ty Lawson and Joseph Young at the point.  On the surface, it's a more promising situation than giving relief to Rajon Rondo.  How it plays out, of course, could be a different animal.

Land of Canaan

The Bulls have added more depth at the point beyond bringing back the recently-waived Spencer Dinwiddie for the Summer League.  While their latest move doesn't have nearly the same interest of bringing Dwyane Wade and Rajon Rondo aboard, it could help their three-point shooting.  That's their biggest hope in signing Isaiah Canaan to a two-year, $2.2 million deal with a team option for the second year.

Canaan, 25, made his NBA debut with the Houston Rockets on Christmas Day in 2013, though he only played 23 seconds.  In Feb. 2015, he was traded to the Philadelphia 76ers, where he's been ever since.  Over 146 games in his three seasons, he's averaged 9.4 points, two rebounds and 1.8 assists while shooting 36.8 percent from the field.  Last year was his best scoring and rebounding season with 11 and 2.3 respectively.

Those obviously are not the numbers of a franchise-changing player, but Canaan's career three-point shooting of 36.3 percent exceeds the collective 29.7 percentage of Wade, Rondo and Jimmy Butler.  If Canaan is productive, it could offset a lot of the criticism that the Rondo and Wade signings did nothing to help the pace-and-space preached by Fred Hoiberg.  Not everyone cared to hear about the Bulls getting players on the wrong side of 30 who can't shoot from long range.  Maybe this will make those people feel a little better.

Sure, Canaan doesn't have as much as talent as most, if not all the recent Bulls acquisitions, but you gotta take chances on low-risk, low-reward guys.  That's how teams fill out their rosters.  And you never know when someone could become a key cog on a winner.  How do we know Canaan won't become the Bulls' go-to three-point shooter?

With the roster now at 13, this might be the end of significant additions for the Bulls this offseason.  There might be another minor signing or two between now and late September, but as far as players of consequence, don't expect anything too drastic.  Besides, it's not like expectations are high anyway.  This will be a season to just sit back and enjoy the narrative.

Goodbye to Gasol

Finally, as promised, I get to blog about Pau Gasol leaving the Bulls after he agreed to a two-year, $30 million contract with the San Antonio Spurs on Monday.  With all the hoopla over Dwyane Wade coming to the team, I was worried this post wouldn't be as relevant by the time I found time for it.  All I had going for me was that this was a bigger story than the waiving of Spencer Dinwiddie.  Fortunately, Gasol published a Players Tribune piece on Thursday, so I have more leverage, especially after he wrote the following:

"I know the Bulls organization and the fans had high expectations for our team.  I came to Chicago to win and it stings that we weren’t able to live up to our potential.

I take so many positive things away from the entire experience in Chicago.  I saw Jimmy Butler transform from a role player the season before I got to the team, into an All-Star in this league — and more importantly, into a leader.  I hope to watch him continue to rise — and carry the team with him — for years to come.

I will be forever grateful to the Reinsdorf family, to the entire Bulls organization, to the players, and especially to the fans, for making me feel loved and at home, through good times and bad. Y ou were there for me, and I will carry the memories we made together at the United Center and in the community for the rest of my life."

What really touches me is the part when he talks about his relationship with Nikola Mirotic, who arrived in Chicago at the exact same time he did.  It was comforting enough that the two were fellow countrymen.  But that Gasol was able to impart the same wisdom bestowed upon him by the late Lorenzen Wright is particularly heartwarming.  Mirotic's star began to rise after that with more minutes and better play.

But that's just one way Gasol made such a positive impact during his two-year stint in Chicago.  He signed here after the Bulls missed out on Carmelo Anthony.  It was a field day for the critics who always like to say the Bulls can never land the cream of the crop in free agency.  Before long, most of them kept quiet.

Gasol made an immediate impact that lasted for the duration of his tenure here.  While his defense was never the best, he made the most of his ample opportunities in the paint on offense.  From there, his effectiveness was as high as it had ever been, resulting in the All-NBA Second Team in 2015 and back-to-back All-Star selections.  The first of those selections was particularly special as he was voted to start opposite his brother Marc, the only such occurrence in league history.

Off the court, he was the Bull most active on social media.  In both English and Spanish, he posted before every game and after every win, so he became an intriguing follow very quickly.  While he posted about other things, that he wasted no time posting messages for his fans made him all the more personable.  When I did my NBA Player Tweets blog for my grad school class, I said Gasol would be the player I'd most want to follow me back on Twitter.

Also while in grad school, my classmate and good friend Teresa Garica Alonso did an interview with him while working for Marca (translation here).  She went back to Spain shortly before last Christmas, but continued to cover the Bulls until then.  I have to think she had a good, trusting relationship with him throughout that gig.  That she had that opportunity is absolutely amazing.

So there's a lot we're going to miss about Gasol as he moves onto Texas.  He raised his game to as high as it had ever been, thus leaving his mark in Bulls history.  He knew how to treat everybody, which is one of the most important things as an athlete and a person.  If you can do both, you're going to make a lot of friends and be loved by each one of them.

Even if I've never met him like Teresa did, I feel like I've really gotten to know him through his play and personality.  Other Bulls fans surely feel the same way.  Accordingly, we should wish him the best going forward.  Hopefully before he hangs it up, he can taste that championship glory one last time.

Wade-Ing Back Home

I've been so busy the past few days, I haven't had time to give my thoughts on Pau Gasol joining the San Antonio Spurs.  That post will have to wait another day though because a story of much greater interest broke Wednesday night.  What happened goes against the "younger, more athletic" vision Gar Forman had for the Bulls during his draft night press conference.  But it also plays into his statement that the team would execute a retool rather than a rebuild.

Dwyane Wade, whom the Bulls coveted on 2003 draft night, but was taken by the Miami Heat first, is leaving the team he won three championships and became a future Hall of Famer with to come home.  He's agreed to a two-year, $47.5 million deal with the Bulls, making it the first time he's ever been the highest paid player on his team.  The second year contains a player option, so he could opt out for free agency if he wishes.

Returning to the area he grew up in, Wade stated in a farewell letter to Miami he always envisioned it happening.  Like many of us, he grew up watching Michael Jordan lead his hometown team to six championships.  A lot of his family still lives in the area.  Now, as the 34-year-old Marquette graduate gets closer to the end of his career, everything has come full circle.

The Bulls had to create cap space in order to meet Wade's salary.  They shipped Mike Dunleavy to the Cleveland Cavaliers for what will likely be a second-round draft pick or overseas player.  Jose Calderon, acquired in the Derrick Rose trade, went to the Los Angeles Lakers along with two future second-round picks for future considerations.  And while it doesn't appear to have been a stipulation, Doug McDermott posted on Instagram he's willing to give up his No. 3 jersey for Wade.

This move also shuffles the Bulls' player hierarchy and roles a bit.  Wade automatically becomes the most talented player they have, even at his age.  Jimmy Butler will move to small forward in the starting lineup, allowing Wade to work with Rajon Rondo in the backcourt.  All three are fine with it since Butler and Rondo recruited Wade to join them.

As Bulls fans, the first thing we have to think about is the team's prior history with Wade.  His Miami teams won three of four playoff meetings, two of them en route to championships, the second coming three years after he nearly signed with the Bulls.  When LeBron James and Chris Bosh joined him at a time the Bulls were looking to ascend even higher, all three were regularly reviled in Chicago, resulting in a playoff atmosphere whenever the Heat came to the United Center.  And he was a rookie on the team that dealt the first Bulls loss I saw in person (my sixth game overall).

Now that Wade is a Bull, the chief concern, other than his injury-prone knees and high mileage on his legs, is how well can he, Butler and Rondo perform in Fred Hoiberg's pace-and-space system?  All three are a combined 29.7 percent from beyond the three-point line in their careers.  It might be Hoiberg who will have to adjust instead by way of more isolation plays those three prefer.  He had two of those players last year in Butler and Rose, but now, it's becoming an epidemic.

Had this move taken place five or six years ago, the city would be ecstatic.  Championship dreams would be at a fever pitch.  Instead, Wade and Rondo are older and while still effective, are no longer players who can catapult a franchise to the top of the league.  Getting to the first or second round of the playoffs is attainable now, but it's unreasonable to expect the Bulls to challenge Cleveland, Toronto and especially the brand-new super team that just formed with Kevin Durant headed to Golden State.

As far as entertainment value goes however, there will be plenty of it.  Last season was not fun because everyone was clinging onto championship aspirations that flopped spectacularly.  The Bulls didn't look good a lot of the time either.  Now, with one of the NBA's biggest names and one of it's most prolific passers, interest in the team has piqued once again.

Of course, there's just as high a likelihood that this team won't win more than 30 games.  It's possible Hoiberg will insist his way is the best way and everyone involved will have just as bad a time as those on last year's team did.  That seems to be the biggest fear for many critics:  all that money the Bulls dished out will be for naught and they'll be forced to start that rebuild they didn't want anyway.

But here's the thing:  as optimal as a rebuild might seem, and I've called for it several times myself over these past few months, it's never a sure thing.  Why don't you ask the Philadelphia 76ers how well that's worked for them?  Or how long it took the Los Angeles Clippers to earn the relevancy they now have?  A lot needs to go your way and the Bulls' brass understands that, which is probably why they only wanted to go so far in that "younger, more athletic" idea Forman preached.

Be careful what you wish for.  Do you really want to relive the Tim Floyd and Bill Cartwright years?  I sure as heck don't want six straight years without a playoff spot again.  That was a terrible time to be a Bulls fan and as Jerry Reinsdorf has shown in recent years, he'll be damned if he allows that to happen as long as he lives.

And you know how Rondo and Butler recruited Wade to come to Chicago?  Just remember that helped bring Miami's Big 3 together.  The addition of Wade also gives the Bulls a bigger recruiter than they ever had in Rose.  Assuming he doesn't opt out after this year, the Bulls could use him to help lure a big free agent to Chicago such as Russell Westbrook or Blake Griffin and they'll have to cap space to do just that.

So if you ask me, the positives of bringing Wade home far outweigh the negatives.  Sure, it won't add a seventh championship banner to the rafters, but for short-term image and entertainment, it's brilliant.  We shouldn't punish ourselves by thinking negatively about this team.  It all depends on curbing your expectations.

I hate basketball hell as much as the next guy, but if you're going to be there, you might as well look good.  You can't convince me I would have preferred Calderon, Jerian Grant and Robin Lopez as the biggest offseason acquisitions over this.  And while Denzel Valentine would have been fun to see in the starting lineup, putting the final draft lottery pick there would have painted the Bulls as a team in a lot worse trouble.  Wade and Rondo have the NBA accolades to justify watching them.

A league that thrives on talent should mean the Bulls will fit in just fine.  Maybe they won't rack up the wins and postseason success as the top tier of the league, but how can you not be interested in what they now have to offer?  It should convince TNT and ESPN to give them almost as many national TV games as they did last year.  Wade alone draws lots of attention and if this doesn't assure the Bulls play the New York Knicks on Christmas, nothing will.

The time has come to let bygones be bygones and get behind this kid from Robbins.  It will definitely feel weird at first, but we should come to accept him, maybe even love him, over time.  His mere presence is already putting fun back into Bulls basketball.  With that in mind, welcome home, Dwyane.

Raking in Rajon

With Derrick Rose gone and the Bulls looking to get younger and more athletic, quite a few were surprised when the team met with Rajon Rondo on Friday.  Wasn't this going against what Gar Forman had preached on draft night?  Rondo, most recently with the Sacramento Kings, is 30 years old and has a surgically repaired ACL as well as a polarizing reputation among teammates and opponents.  None of that mattered to the Bulls' brass.

Rondo agreed to a two-year, $28 million contract with the Bulls on Sunday, making him the starting point guard.  The second year of the four-time All-Star's contract is partially guaranteed.  It's probably not exactly what Rondo, joining his fourth team in less than two years, had in mind, but he and Fred Hoiberg had good feelings after watching film for over an hour during the meeting.

Rondo led the NBA in assists for the third time in his career last season, averaging 11.7 dimes per game (matching a career-high set in 2012-13 with Boston) to go with 11.9 points and six rebounds.  He recorded 10 assists in 51 of his 72 games, twice reaching the 20 mark.  But not everything went smoothly as he earned a one-game suspension for using a homophobic slur against gay official Bill Kennedy.

This move means different things for the Bulls on two fronts.  It drops their salary cap space to $84 million, so Dwyane Wade most certainly won't be coming to Chicago now.  As for the point guard position, Jose Calderon could be waived, but Spencer Dinwiddie is a more likely candidate because his contract is non-guaranteed.

Some are skeptical about pairing Rondo with Jimmy Butler, who's come to be known as much of a control freak.  But if there's any point guard in the league who can give Jimmy the shots he wants at any cost, it's Rondo.  He knows how to create opportunities for his teammates, sometimes with reckless abandon.  Although that might not always work, it would certainly be better than Butler and Rose acting indecisive on who gets opportunities at certain times.

Others would rather see the young players on the team get most of the minutes since this move probably makes the Bulls a middle playoff seed at best.  Really though, you shouldn't want to watch bad basketball simply because guys aren't talented enough.  Yes, the Bulls just failed to make the playoffs with guys who supposedly have talent, which is maddening by itself, but it's even more difficult to watch a team that you know has no chance.  At least with Rondo, you know you're watching a proven commodity and thus, increases your chances of winning.

Perhaps biggest of all, people simply don't like the way Rondo carries himself.  After all, this is the same guy who allegedly got away with a flagrant foul that bloodied up Brad Miller in Game 5 of the 2009 first-round playoff series with Boston.  The counterpoint is nobody in Chicago cared much for Dennis Rodman either until he arrived.  Just because you have hard feelings for him, it shouldn't affect how much of this coming year's team you choose to watch.

Whatever you feel about Rondo or the decision to sign him, don't send everyone involved off a cliff yet, though everything that's happened up to that point would make it justifiable.  Let's see how well Rondo and Fred Hoiberg mesh together or if they even mesh at all.  Almost every move is worth giving the benefit of the doubt.  This is one that could at least make for some entertaining times at the United Center.

Noah's a Knick

The first day of NBA free agency meant a lot of action on the Bulls' part, even if it just meant subtraction and speculation.  E'Twaun Moore became the latest in a line of quality backup point guards to leave when he agreed to a four-year, $34 million deal with the New Orleans Pelicans.  The Bulls met with Rajon Rondo and became one of four teams in play for Dwayne Wade, who didn't like his Miami Heat's latest offer.  But it was the move involving the longtime heart and soul of the team that rightly generated the most interest and discussion.

Joakim Noah agreed to join Derrick Rose on the New York Knicks to the tune of four years and $72 million.  Noah, who grew up in New York, has never shied away from his Big Apple roots.  It only took the Knicks' team led by Phil Jackson, Steve Mills and Jeff Hornacek three hours in an Orlando-area hotel to officially bring him home.  Even before the news came out though, Noah posted a photo of himself wearing a Knicks cap on Instagram, signaling an announcement was imminent.

With Pau Gasol surely on his way out next, the starting center job is Robin Lopez's to lose.  In fact, he's the only true center currently under contract.  Cristiano Felicio is the only other player on the roster who could fill that position, starting or not, so Gar Forman and John Paxson will likely sign a free agent to add depth there.  Both guard positions need some help too, but don't count on the team making a big splash as all indications seem to be the front office is waiting a year or two to do it.

As for Noah, the longest-tenured Bull until Friday, he leaves behind an ecstatic personality and hard-nosed work ethic that gave life to a group Chicago will always hold near and dear.  His dunk on Paul Pierce in the 2009 playoffs is an iconic moment in Bulls history and it jumpstarted a career many felt couldn't happen when he was drafted while dressed to the extreme in 2007.  Even fewer felt it was possible when, coming off a one-game suspension his rookie year, his teammates voted to bench him for a second straight contest.

But Noah proved his basketball career could flourish beyond the back-to-back national titles he won at Florida.  When Rose tore his meniscus early in the 2013-14 season, Noah put the team on his back for the rest of it.  Taking on a point center role and cranking his defensive game up tenfold, he earned his second straight All-Star selection, became Defense Player of the Year and was named to the All-NBA First Team.  Despite earning home-court advantage in the first round of the playoffs that year, the Bulls couldn't overcome the loss of Rose and got bounced in five games by the Washington Wizards.

Noah also proved he was more than just a legitimate NBA player.  His Noah's Arc Foundation has helped children with self-expression and his anti-violence initiative has shown his deep concern for the violence that is sadly a way of life in Chicago.  This is an amazing transition for someone who needed the Newtown school shooting to occur to end his six-shooter celebration, even though he had spoken out on gun violence before that.  In 2015, he won the J. Walter Kennedy Citizenship Award, a culmination for the man he came to be.

The breakup of a Bulls team that had a shot at a championship has been tough to swallow, but Noah's departure might be the most difficult part of it.  Chicago has always thrown love back at athletes who epitomize the blue-collar work ethic it symbolizes.  Noah did his best with what he had and didn't surround himself with controversy the way others in the organization did the past few years.  It's unfortunate his body started to slow him down and sideline him frequently because before that, the way he played on the court and carried himself off it was something to be admired.

So as we bid farewell to Noah's nine years with this team, let us wish him well in all his future endeavors.  It was time to move on, but that shouldn't make us think less of him.  He will always have a place here in Chicago even if he electrifies Madison Square Garden instead of the United Center.  In his case, 13 was almost always a lucky number.

Drafting Near and Far

For a large portion of Thursday's draft, rumors persisted that the Bulls were shopping Jimmy Butler, whose spot on the U.S. Olympic team had just become official, to acquire Providence's Kris Dunn.  Even after the Minnesota Timberwolves drafted Dunn, they continued to push hard for Butler before talks ultimately dissipated.  Gar Forman later said shopping him never even happened.  So for now, Butler will stay in Chicago and get used to the two players the Bulls picked.

For the second time in three years, the Bulls ended up with the reigning national player of the year.  Doug McDermott was that player in 2014 and this time, it's Denzel Valentine of Michigan State with the 14th pick.  A four-year player for a winning program, Valentine is right up there with recent Bulls draft picks with similar backgrounds.

His key is his versatility and doing it at a high level.  Scoring and passing both come easy for him, so it's great to see the Bulls draft someone with his skill set.  He has the body of a guard and skill set of a forward.  His court vision is fantastic and after a few years, he could be seen as one of the leaders on the team, assuming it matures and improves.

There are questions about his athleticism and it will be interesting to see how he adapts with those limitations.  Even more pressing are the questions surrounding his left knee, on which he had arthroscopic surgery for torn cartilage last December.  It goes back to a football injury he suffered in ninth grade and caused concern for several teams looking at him.

But Valentine, who played 144 of a possible 148 games in college, has downplayed any potential knee issues.  His main argument is the wear and tear on his body is no different from that sustained by other athletes.  The Bulls' medical staff is also comfortable with his health, so everyone is on the same page.

With the Bulls, it's likely Valentine will most often play shooting guard, his natural position, as well as small forward.  Forman also said he could play point guard if necessary.  It's a testament to the versatility that made him attractive to so many teams, even if the knee thing was the elephant in the room.  There's no reason Fred Hoiberg shouldn't give him plenty of playing time to show he can be in the NBA for years to come.

In the second round with the 48th pick, the Bulls selected forward Paul Zipser out of Germany.  When I saw this selection, my first thought wasn't that his team, Bayern Munich, shared the name of a famous soccer team.  It wasn't even the fact that the Bulls took one of 16 international players drafted, second-most ever.  It was that he happened to share the last name of my good friend Justin Zipser and luckily, he was all game for the jokes headed his way.

Anyway, Zipser has a buyout option with his team and the indication is he'll be joining the team this coming season, though his commitment to the German national team will keep him away from the Bulls' Summer League team.  His body is ready for the NBA, as is his ability to play both forward positions.  His energy is good on both ends and he can score above the rim, from the free-throw line and in catch-and-shoot situations.  He's also 22 years old just like Valentine, but age is just a number when it comes to the draft, so he's got time to show he's worth more than a second-round pick.

The chief concerns surrounding him are his non-elite athleticism and slow shot release.  If he doesn't adapt to or change those respective areas, that will cut his stay in the league short if his knee problems and the extra bone in his foot don't.  But if the Bulls have enough faith in him to give him a shot right off the bat, maybe there's more to his game than we know.  If he works out even remotely better than recent second-round picks Erik Murphy and Cameron Bairstow, that's already a sign the Bulls had a good draft.

Valentine and Zipser will be introduced Monday and next Friday, the free agency period begins.  The Bulls have approximately $25 million in cap space to spend.  Will they decide to add further depth at point guard, find a backup center for Robin Lopez or go in another direction?  Whatever they do could determine how long this first step in returning to respectability will take, so the front office better conduct itself wisely.