Chicago Bulls Thread

[air gordon]

forgive me for asking...what would be the right moves?

[benji]

Some kind of plane crash that kills everyone but Rose and Noah, then they sign Wade, along with LeBron and Bosh (with the injury exception from the plane crash).

[Andrew]

forgive me for asking...what would be the right moves?

Not repeating their 2000 or 2006 offseasons and bringing in the wrong player/best available player and overpaying to do so, or replacing Vinny Del Negro (presuming he's being given to the end of the season but is still on his way out) with another inexperienced coach. In other words, make overtures towards one of the top tier free agents (Dwyane Wade is probably their best bet and that's still probably setting expectations a little high) and certainly don't panic and end up overpaying for a Ben Wallace or Ron Mercer. As for the coach, someone like Byron Scott, Avery Johnson or Lawrence Frank; someone high profile with a proven track record and some measure of success in the NBA. I admit it's a lot easier talking about what they shouldn't do rather than naming specific moves I think would be right, since I can only speculate on what's feasible.

[puttincomputers]

keep vdn! he is the best coach to happen to chicago since whats his name who is now with the lakers. this may sound strange but i think the bulls will make it to the conference finals and lose to orlando. and the key to that could be a signing of someone like finley.

[Andrew]

Vinny Del Negro the best coach since Phil Jackson? A broken down, on retirement's doorstep Michael Finley the key to a Conference Finals run? Somehow, I don't think so.

[puttincomputers]

Robert Parish. jk

[Andrew]

As I said in the other thread I wouldn't mind if they signed Finley - he's probably going to a contender though - but I doubt it would make a huge difference.

[benji]

I can't see a team this bad on offense making the Conference Finals.

[Andrew]

Getting out of the first round would be overachieving.

[atlwarrior]

this may sound strange

He did give a heads up that it would sound strange atleast. But yea bro i agree with drew & benji. Especially since they got rid of Salmons & Thomas. I think their focus is on freeing cap space for the 2010 free agents. Im hoping they can get Wade this summer.

[Andrew]

I'd love to see it happen, but I'm trying not to get my hopes up too much. Right now I'd pick him to stay in Miami.

[Andrew]

Disappointing loss at home to the Grizzlies today, outscored 29-16 in the fourth.

[George7]

that's where Noah was missing.Though Brad was good.
D-Rose and Deng were the best as always,but sth is missing

[Valor]

that's where Noah was missing.Though Brad was good.
D-Rose and Deng were the best as always,but sth is missing

the rebounding from Noah of course, we've been outrebounded by heaps in the last few games

[NovU]

I'd love to see it happen, but I'm trying not to get my hopes up too much. Right now I'd pick him to stay in Miami.

Speaking of the speculation, if he were to leave Miami, I think Chicago would be his choice since it's his hometown, but perhaps not, since he stated he hates cold weather. Anyways, even if it happens, I don't think the Chicago will be a contender with Deng, Rose, and Wade as a core.

[Andrew]

True, that's a big step to take even with such a significant acquisition. But Wade, Rose, Deng and Noah wouldn't be a terrible core moving forward.

[Lamrock]

Why did the Bulls dump Skiles? He's doing a fantastic job in Milwaukee right now.

[Andrew]

Give it a couple more years. Skiles isn't a bad coach, but he seems to wear out his welcome in time and there appears to be a ceiling on just how far he can take a team. Perhaps Milwaukee will be a better fit for him though and he'll have a longer, more successful tenure there.

[benji]

They were 9-16 coming off a 49-33 (55-27 pythag) season. Paxson, and most of the media, believed the Bulls were ready to take the next step to contend instead of realizing it was a fluke season built off of Skiles whipping the team into a defensive fury and everyone shooting well.

Guy is a killer defensive coach:
1998-99 Suns (pre-Skiles): 19th
1999-00 Suns: 3rd
2000-01 Suns: 2nd
2001-02 Suns (half-Skiles): 12th
2002-03 Suns (no-Skiles): 11th

2002-03 Bulls (pre-Skiles): 21st
2003-04 Bulls (half-Skiles): 16th
2004-05 Bulls: 2nd
2005-06 Bulls: 7th
2006-07 Bulls: 1st
2007-08 Bulls (sorta-Skiles): 14th
2008-09 Bulls (no-Skiles): 18th

2007-08 Bucks (pre-Skiles): 30th
2008-09 Bucks: 15th
2009-10 Bucks: 3rd

[Andrew]

That too. His successors have hardly been light years better.

[Andrew]

Rose is done for the night with a sprained wrist and the Bulls are down by 23 and counting. Not sure I can sit through another half of this one.

[NovU]

Toronto, Charlotte, Miami and Chicago. One of these teams will have to miss a playoffs. Such a tight race. I never thought it had to come down to this a few months ago. Who da heck thought the Bucks would be in 5th seed over us. Anyways, every loss/win counts now.

With tonight's loss, it's 1.5 games from playoff seeding. I am keeping my eyes on every win/loss from any of the teams above.

Good luck with your team, Andrew.

[Andrew]

The schedule doesn't get any easier. With the injuries and cap clearing trades thinning their roster, it would appear a playoff push has certainly been sacrificed in the name of more dollars for a big name. The question is, will the roster be appealing enough to any of the players they're targeting with that money and will the player they end up - assuming they can get a major free agent - be enough to make a difference? I don't relish the thought of Joe Johnson or David Lee at $15 million per year.

[Phil89]

Watched the first half today. Didn't bother with the second, especially with Rose getting injured.

Play-off contention is still in their own hands. They still have to play the Bucks and Raptors once, as well as the Bobcats and Heat twice. But if they play like they did today then it doesn't look good. They'll need better performances and players recovering from injuries to have a chance though.

[shadowgrin]

Tyrus Thomas will go insane when the 'Cats meet the Bulls.