Should point out that I am working on a long/elaborate post about how the Bulls need to trade Luol (or some other significant move) in order to move up from "getting into the playoffs and making an early exit" to "actual contender". Also working on a prediction re: 2010 free agents, and how the Bulls will miss out on all the big names. Both should be interesting once I get my thoughts together. Speaking of having my thoughts together, here is a poorly thought out rant ...
The Bulls are basically what I expected so far - winning winnable games and losing games to the real contenders. We have had a sub-par Rose (because of the ankle), have been missing TT most of the year, and missing Kirk recently. Like most seasons, we are not off to a fast start ... just riding out the tough early schedule and then make up some ground when the schedule becomes more favorable. Seems good enough, so I cannot complain.
The problem I have is still with coaching. I don't understand what Vinny is doing ... he is not a defensive coach (like Skiles was/is), not a motivator, and clearly not an offensive genius (clearly - I'll get to that below). So if we will never win a championship with VDN running the ship, what are we doing? Biding our time in hopes of getting lucky. I recently linked to Matt at Blogabull when he spelled out that whole theory.
My problem is more with the day to day coaching of this team ... what are we doing to get better from game to game? Or even be consistent from game to game, or possession to possession. I watch pretty much every game and don't understand the Bulls offense. We do something different every time down the floor. We completely lack an identity ... and that all stems from the coach. I don't know what VDN is trying to accomplish ... so I don;t know what this team is doing. The lineups and minutes change from night to night - different sets of players running different styles of offense.
I'd like to see the Bulls become something: a PnR team, isolate D-Rose, run-and-gun ... just some general plan. That way I could tell if we were executing the plan, or just continuing to play like a bunch of high school freshman waiting for an open look and firing up long 2-point jumpers.
This rant is starting to feel like the Bulls offense, completely random with no direction and no real point ... so that's it for now. Here's some links:
Bulls top Pistons to spoil Gordon's return to Chicago
John Salmons led all scorers with 22 points, and Derrick Rose finished with 19 points and six assists, as the Chicago Bulls
earned a 92-85 win over the Detroit Pistons in a Central Division matchup at
the United Center.
Brad Miller chipped in with 16 points, seven boards and six assists for
Chicago, which was able to snap a five-game slide. Luol Deng went for 14
points and eight rebounds, while Joakim Noah finished with a game-best 14
boards to go along with seven points.
Hinrich might be back Saturday
Kirk Hinrich may be coming back to the Chicago Bulls sooner than expected.
The veteran guard, who was scheduled to miss between one to two weeks because of a sprained thumb, is improving quickly. He might even be able to play this weekend.
Rose would love to play with LeBron
Chicago Bulls guard Derrick Rose admitted on Thursday that he has fantasized about playing alongside Cleveland Cavaliers star LeBron James and other superstars who will make up the free agent class of 2010.
Rose even made a playful recruiting pitch.
"Any one of them superstars needs to come here," Rose said. "I wouldn't mind playing with anybody, especially a guy like [James]. He can't do nothing but make the team better."
Should fans have booed Ben Gordon?
So Bulls fans booed Ben Gordon in his return to the United Center which begs the question: "Was booing Gordon really the right thing to do?"
First, I think the casual fan is likely to boo Gordon for two reasons.
1: Sports radio loved to beat the guy up. I think far more than he deserved (I don't think he deserved to be beat up at all)
2: The casual fan is more likely to just boo anyone who leaves the team regardless of whether he deserves it.
Me personally, I wasn't going to boo Gordon if I was at the game (I wasn't), but I'm not outraged at it. The guy isn't with the team anymore. He's a Piston. He could have been a Bull, but he's not, and he rejected multiple contract offers to stay here.
Who's Bulls' new Gordon? He sees no one
Ben Gordon was mostly diplomatic when asked if he was upset the Bulls didn't make a harder push to keep him. But he answered candidly when asked if he believes his former team has filled his former role.
''I don't think so,'' Gordon said. ''I've watched a few games. At the end, especially with the addition of [Derrick Rose] a year ago, there were two guys who could make big, big shots. And now, it looks like it's only him. John [Salmons] can make big shots, and Luol [Deng] can make big shots.
''But last year, the team relied on me and D-Rose to make plays down the stretch. It looks like it's only him right now. But I'm sure they'll be fine with the guys they have.''
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