Chicago Bulls Thread

[air gordon]

that would suck ass for the Bulls if Aldridge stays in college..

The Bulls should make the playoffs. Philly and Milwaukee are just as mediocre as Chicago is. they should be able to catch them

i don't care if they get swept in the 1st round. If they make playoffs that more then likely means that the team is closing out games strong, not having those quarters where they play lost, and probably Skiles is keeping a consistent lineup out there

[Gedas]

D. Songaila out for the rest of the season

The Chicago Bulls announced today that forward Darius Songaila has a sesamoid fracture of the right foot and will be out six to eight weeks.

The 6-8, 240-pound Songaila has appeared in all 62 games this season (seven starts) and averaged 9.2 ppg, 4.0 rpg and 1.4 apg in 21.4 mpg.

Too bad, I really liked how he played this season, and now the Bulls objective to make it to the playoffs will be almost impossible to achieve. Too bad...

[J@3]

Lol wtf? Songaila being injured means it's impossible for the Bulls to make the play-offs

[Andrew]

i don't care if they get swept in the 1st round. If they make playoffs that more then likely means that the team is closing out games strong, not having those quarters where they play lost, and probably Skiles is keeping a consistent lineup out there

Agreed.

Losing Songaila is a blow but I don't think that wipes out all hope of making the playoffs, no disrespect to Darius intended.

A win against the Hawks today while the Bucks went down to the Clippers. The Bulls next two games are against the Blazers and Bucks, wins there would edge them just a bit closer and another win over the Bucks takes the season series 3-1, giving the Bulls the first tie breaker.

I wouldn't call the rest of the schedule easy but it's not too bad. Only three games against division leaders, some games against sub .500 teams and a couple of contests against the lower seeds in the East; victories there will be huge. 10 of their final 19 are at home as well.

[Jugs]

Trust me Andrew, the Bulls will not beat the Blazers.

[Andrew]

The Blazers did win the earlier matchup, I'll grant you that. They've got a better chance than they did against the Pistons though so I remain hopeful.

[air gordon]

Maybe Sweetney can make himself useful now...

i've seen Tim Thomas put some decent games together since he has joined the Suns. What do you guys think about the Paxsons/Skiles decision to leave him on the inactive list while he was on the Bulls?

[Andrew]

It probably looks worse than it really is. He's playing with Steve Nash and in an uptempo system where he can hoist four threes a game without a care. Given the way Skiles doesn't seem to be a fan of scorers I'm not sure he'd utilise him even if he was available. Then again, Skiles is the sort that would cut his nose off to spite his face.

I'd like to think that Thomas is now in a situation that fits him and he wouldn't have helped the Bulls as much as his current production may indicate. His minutes would have also likely come at the expense of Deng and Noce, which I wouldn't have cared for.

[air gordon]

i don't think it's the phoenix system, i think it's thomas finally getting some minutes. the guy has above average skills. he's going to put up some stats anywhere

IMO the Bulls could have used Thomas- at least in a Pargo type role. there have been quite a few times where the bulls offense has stalled and if someone like Pargo is given a chance to put some points on the board, surely Thomas deserved one too

IMO he should have at least been kept on the active list. Maybe he would complain about losing minutes to Deng and Nocioni but he would know better to keep his mouth shut since he's in a contract year


Luol Deng playing well. just in time for the NC2a's. oh wait...

[Andrew]

Perhaps. He'd probably be better in the Pargo role than Pargo. But it comes down to Skiles. I mean, Gordon's shown a knack for putting up points especially in the fourth quarter and Skiles will keep him out of the game. Even if he was on the active list he probably wouldn't have been used effectively in any role, even when he'd be perfect for a "desperate need of a scoring boost" situation.

[air gordon]

Gordon hasn't had that many 4th qtr explosions this year. Come to think of it, ever since Gordon has become a starter, I think Skiles more often then not has been fair about benching Gordon if he fucks something up in the 2nd half. There has even been a few times where Hinrich takes a seat after a careless turnover

anyway- i'll just agree to disagree. personally i don't know how he wouldn't be used effectively if he's just playing the role of instant offense- you're out there to score. if you can't hit anything, take back your seat on the bench

[Andrew]

Personally, I'm just trying to stay positive about it and not think about what could have been. It gets too frustrating, sometimes.

Nice win over Portland yesterday but barring a fourth quarter barrage it looks like they're headed for a loss against the Bucks.

[Andrew]

Watching Nazr Mohammed play in the Spurs/Suns game today, I really wouldn't mind the Bulls can make a strong bid for him this offseason. Obviously it's just one game and it would be easy to overpay him, but I think he could indeed be a good addition. His numbers don't jump out at you this season but those look a lot better as a starter...and that's still playing less than half the game. Working on a 20-20 game against the Suns at the moment.

[air gordon]

i don't think Thomas is an ass like Eddie Robinson or a crybaby like Jalen Rose. I think he should have gotten a chance

Paxson mentioned recently how he wanted more minutes going to Deng and Nocioni but sometimes Skiles has sat one or both during important stretches of ballgames

anyway.. i'm getting a little skeptical about the Bulls offseason. names like Nazr Mohammed, Al Harrington, Drew Gooden don't thrill me. the Bulls need better impact players then these guys. Mohammed would be ok though I guess since they need another big man

Paxson has shown a knack for finding serviceable, hard working players with good attitudes. Now he has go out and get a star quality player

[Andrew]

Agreed, but as far as role players are concerned (especially in the middle and up front) there's a couple of decent possibilities, like Mohammed. What do you make of the chances of getting the impact player they need with this year's likely draft class and the likelihood of a top five pick courtesy of Isiah Thomas?

[air gordon]

unless it's a trade for Kevin Garnett. i don't think the Bulls will be making a major trade to find their impact player. So most likely the Bulls will be using the FA and the draft to improve the team

i think Aldridge is the guy the Bulls need to target. Apparently he's the Tyson Chandler Tyson Chandler was supposed to be- Excellent athletcisim with NBA defensive AND offensive skills.

Assuming he declares, if the Bulls don't land the top pick (nyk's pick), i believe Paxson should trade up to get him. Include Duhon, Sweetney, and/or the other pick. whatever.

Going by todays standings- NYK, Portland & Charlotte seem to be fighting for the worst record. Neither Portland nor Charlotte need a big man. So maybe those teams may pass up on Aldridge/select Aldridge and trade him for a need should they land the top pick

As i said, Nazr would be ok since he'll probably just cost a little over MLE. Those other guys though- Gooden or Harrington, they'll probably be asking for multiyear contracts averaging ~$9million annually. And since Cleveland has the rights to match any offer, they probably will do a sign and trade with Gooden so they don't lose him for nothing

[Andrew]

I see what you're saying about Gooden and Harrington. I suppose the Draft is going to be the best bet. Here's hoping New York wins the lottery.

Couple of losses the last two days. Fortunately the Sixers aren't tearing it up so that 2.5 game difference isn't getting any bigger.

[air gordon]

yeh so now you can see why I"m not really thrilled about this offseason. It's possible that the Bulls will be putting their hopes on some college player (who hasn't dominated at the college level) being that star player they lack

[Andrew]

When you put it like that, it does sound a lot less promising. I think that's a product of bad timing rather than bad management though.

[benji]

Aldridge is a phenominal player. His is amazing on the offensive end and so athletic for a big guy. Since the Bulls have two picks, they have to consider taking him with the higher pick. The reason I say this, is because he's the best big talent in the draft, the draft is ripe with backcourt players and the Bulls already have some solid ones in Deng, Gordon, Duhon and Hinrich.

The Bulls are built like a team that could turn the corner and contend very quickly, I say this for two reasons.

One: They have a ton of cap space, with their core still intact. They have two likely lottery picks, a high one allowing them to get a player like Aldridge and a lower one allowing them to pick up someone who's slipped or a solid three-four year college veteran who could have been overlooked like Brad Miller, Marquis Daniels or Josh Howard were.

Two: That core. It's not full of superstars, but it's also not full of terrible players. Aside from Chandler's turnover explosion this year, the team has a bunch of guys who will be on a good teams rotation and quite a few who can start in the league. Hinrich, Deng, Gordon, Duhon, Chandler, Nocioni, Songalia, and Sweetney are all average-above average players. And they're all under contract for the next couple of seasons. Meaning that an addition of a potential beast like Aldridge and a top flight FA or even two lower tier FAs could turn the Bulls around in a flash.

Regarding the lower tier FA concept. (Even though I'm sure it puts the taste of Ron Mercer and Eddie Robinson in Bulls fans mouths.) Look at the Nuggets. They did have some solid pieces such as Nene and Camby, but their backcourt was absolute trash, so the replacements of Harrington, Whitney and Yarbrough with Miller, Boykins, Lenard and Barry was like adding Shaq to the team. Throw in a college beast (Aldridge is basically as good as Anthony was, he just didn't get as many touches this season as Anthony did in college) and they turned things around quickly. The Bulls are better than those Nuggets the year before were.

So adding a borderline All-Star in Drew Gooden, along with a potential beast in LaMarcus Aldridge while the rest of the Bulls continue to develop (and one hopes Chandler bounces back...I know I certainly do...the guys getting 22% more turnovers than his ROOKIE YEAR...which was the worst of his career) could push them into the pack with Cleveland and Indiana there below Detroit and Miami. Especially by taking Gooden off Cleveland.

You can't always get superstars, that's why you look at those solid top 10-15 players at their positions like say Chauncey Billups, Richard Hamilton, Tayshaun Prince, Ben Wallace and Rasheed Wallace...while bringing a wealth of guys who do something really well off the bench...

Things aren't as bad as they look...you just have to hope Paxson knows what he's doing.

[beau_boy04]

mmmm why should the Bulls take Aldridge over Adam Morrison? Isn't Morrison destinated to become the next Larry Bird?

[J@3]

They already have Deng and Nocioni. I love Morrison's attitude and general psychotic behaviour, but it'd be a pointless pick.

[J@3]

Painful gain

Luke Schenscher had as many points Sunday as Tyson Chandler—three—and two more rebounds with eight. Coach Scott Skiles was impressed that Schenscher played despite a sprained right ankle, which was black and blue.

"There's an awful lot of guys in the league who would be out half a season with the ankle sprain that he has," Skiles said. "And he's still playing hard. I like the way he's playing."

from the tribune.

[Andrew]

Nice to see that kind of commitment and grittiness.

[air gordon]

heh thanks for the cup of Bulls kool aid, Ben. But Gooden is not a borderline all star, despite you and Mr Hollinger's stats/beliefs!

If Aldridge can turn into a legit scoring presence in the pros, it would have a positive domino effect on the team.

But that's assuming he declares and Paxson will draft/trade for him (despite Paxson's stance on drafting players only from "traditionally strong college programs")

and then there's that big hurdle named Scott Skiles...