It’s been 13 long years since fans of the Chicago Bulls have had a reason to be as optimistic as they are going into the 2010-11 season. Not that anyone should feel sorry for us. We dominated the 90’s, winning championships in 6 out of 8 years. Not to mention we had the greatest player in the history of the NBA wear our uniform. Some fans never get to see their team win even 1 championship, let alone build a dynasty. But since that dynasty was disbanded after the ‘97-‘98 season, Chicago has been in rebuilding mode every year that followed. Now, after one of the most successful offseason acquisition periods in team history, the sky is the limit for the new- look Bulls.
** Key Losses**
Kirk Hinrich was given away in a trade to Washington that was supposed to make room for one of the coveted max free agents. Top priority on the list of course was LeBron James, followed by Dwyane Wade (who met with his hometown Bulls twice) and Chris Bosh. As we all know, they each decided to play together in Miami to form a superteam that some predict will surpass the Bulls’ unbelievable 1995-96 season where they won 72 games and lost just 10. Brad Miller was also lost in free agency, and eventually signed with the Houston Rockets. For a moment it looked like Chicago could miss out on all the big name free agents, and all the cap space that had been cleared might have been for nothing.
Key Acquisitions
****That was of course until Carlos Boozer agreed to a 5-year, $80 million dollar deal. This move finally gave the Bulls the low-post scoring they’ve lacked for what seems like forever. Boozer isn’t known for his defense, but that’s not what he was brought in for. Joakim Noah will continue to be one of the rising defensive stars at center. His improvement in the block and rebound categories made him a leading contender for the NBA’s Most Improved Player award last season. The signing of Kyle Korver brings them the 3-point shooting that was also a glaring weakness. After trading away Hinrich, they had no long-range shooters left on the roster. Now they have one of the most dangerous in the game. They also tried to land J.J. Reddick, but were outbid by Orlando. Other free agents brought in that weren’t as publicized are SG Ronnie Brewer, PF/C Kurt Thomas, PG CJ Watson and guard Keith Bogans. These moves really helped provide depth and with Boozer now the starting power forward, Taj Gibson has a chance to provide a spark off the bench and win the 6th Man of the Year award this season.
Of all their moves in the offseason, the most important of all could be the man they brought in to run the show. Tom Thibodeau is the new Bulls head coach and his experienced defensive mindset should bring discipline and a winning attitude to a team already on the rise. He was interviewed 2 years ago after the firing of Scott Skiles, but not hired as they decided to go with Vinny Del Negro. After 2 straight seasons at 41-41, it appeared clear that they needed to move in a new direction and fired Del Negro. 2 seasons ago they took the Celtics to 7 games in an epic first round series. Last year, they barely snuck into the playoffs with the 8th seed and lost to the Cavaliers in 5. Thibodeau is clearly head coach material, but he wasn’t going to get his opportunity in Boston where he assisted Doc Rivers in bringing the Celtics back to prominence.
Predictions
****The Bulls have to be the clearcut favorite to win what is now a weak division in the Central of the Eastern Conference. With LeBron out of Cleveland, they’ll fall out of contention immediately. Their only competition will be an up and coming Milwaukee Bucks squad led by their former coach Scott Skiles. Derrick Rose has the ability to shoot the lights out from mid-range and has been working in the offseason to become more of a threat from 3-point distance. I fully expect him to take even further strides in becoming the leader of this team, and may even finish in the top 5 in MVP votes at the end of the season. Ronnie Brewer and Luol Deng are great mid-range shooters as well, but not very good defenders. Hopefully Thibodeau will be able to change that. Their front court rotation looks solid with Kurt Thomas, rookie Omer Asik, Brian Scalabrine and Taj Gibson providing good support for Boozer and Noah. The Bulls are high on Asik, their draft pick from Turkey, who is the team’s only seven footer. His low-post offense is supposedly good, but reports are his free throw shooting is horrific. Kurt Thomas brings experience to a very young team and that can only help. The back court bench talent in CJ Watson, Kyle Korver and Keith Bogans will keep them in the game for the full 48 minutes. Bogan can shoot the ball, but defense is his specialty. Overall, I really like their rotation and think they have players that fit in very nice for any type of lineup that Thibodeau deems necessary given the game situation. Chicago should improve by leaps and bounds in 2010-11, and they’ll make their mark as a team to contend with for years to come. No waiting for the last week of the season to see if they’ll make the playoffs this year. The only mystery is whether they’ll wind up 2nd, 3rd or 4th in the conference.
Regular Season Record: 54-28 (3rd seed in the East)
1st Round Playoff Series: 4-1 Win over #6 Milwaukee
Eastern Semifinals Series: 4-3 Loss to #2 Boston