Bulls Eyeing Arroyo?

The Bulls could be on the verge of signing point guard Carlos Arroyo to a one-year deal.  Arroyo played overseas last season, but has played in the NBA for several teams since 2001.  Arroyo had his best season in 2003-04 as a member of the Utah Jazz, where he started 71 games and averaged 13 points and five assists per game.  He most recently played for the Orlando Magic in the 2007-08 season.  Arroyo is a capable backup point guard and would give the team more depth in the backcourt.  The team currently has guards on the roster, Derrick Rose, John Salmons, Kirk Hinrich, Lindsey Hunter and Jannero Pargo.

Rose and Salmons figure to make up the starting backcourt, with Hinrich seeing significant time at both positions.  Hunter is basically a defensive specialist at this point in his career and Pargo is essentially an offensive specialist.  Brining in Arroyo would add another more balanced player into the mix.  Pargo and Hunter don’t project to see a ton of time on the court this season, and Arroyo could see some point guard minutes and give the Bulls a more traditional regular four-man rotation in the backcourt.

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Team Chemistry

One thing that should not be an issue for the 2009-10 Chicago Bulls is team chemistry.  ESPN did not list them on their rundown of teams that could experience some difficulties this season, as the team did not receive a single vote from the panel of 33 experts that voted.  With Ben Gordon out of town, the Bulls don’t look to have anyone who has caused much trouble in the locker room in the past.  Gordon had problems with his role at times in the past, something that is noted in the article linked above as a factor that could hurt the Detroit Pistons this season, as they tied for the most votes received.

The Bulls have a solid group.  Derrick Rose is the unquestioned franchise player and the playmaker of this team.  They got veteran guys with high character histories, like Kirk Hinrich, to help keep the rookies in check.  Joakim Noah reportedly feuded with Scott Skiles in the past, but Skiles relationship with the team at that time seemed universally contentious.  Luol Deng, one of the highest character guys in the league, will be returning from injury this season and will be looked to as the team’s second option behind Rose.

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Rose Ready to Lead

Derrick Rose says he’s ready to take over as a leader of this team.  Rose, selected first overall in the 2008 NBA Draft, won Rookie of the Year honors and played well in the team’s playoff series against the Boston Celtics.  The Memphis product expressed his confidence in the team and said he hopes that some new incoming players will help the squad.  “We’re going to be good,” he said.  ”Hopefully the players that come in will be able to get us a little better.  We’ve got to compete when we are out there and not think about the pieces we lost.  We got to build.”

Those incoming players include rookie forwards James Johnson and Taj Gibson, as well as guard Jannero Pargo.  “You want to get farther each year and get better each year,” Rose added.  ”We just want to make it past the first round and hopefully go to the championship.  That’s the goal.”  I’m not sure that either rookie will play a huge role for the team this season, but if one does it’ll likely be Johnson.  His versatility should allow him to play both the three and four positions, which gives the team some lineup flexibility.  Pargo, though, should see time, at least down the stretch, as he’s got a penchant for hitting big shots.

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Rich Get Richer in the East

During their playoff series with the Boston Celtics last season, the Bulls looked like a team that was ready to make the leap, ready to take their game to the next level.  For the Bulls, that would mean joining the elite teams of the Eastern Conference.  While that surely remains a goal for the 2009-10 season, it’s not going to be easy.  The rich seemed to get richer in the East this offseason.  Four players acquired by Eastern Conference teams received votes for “Best Newcomer” in a recent ESPN.com experts poll.

The Cavaliers, last season’s number one seed, acquired Shaquille O’Neal.  The Orlando Magic, last season’s conference champs, acquired Vince Carter, though they lost Hedo Turkoglu.  Turkoglu moved on to Toronto and last season’s number two seed, the Celtics, acquired Rasheed Wallace.  The top three teams in the conference, the Cavs, Magic and Celtics, all made major acquisitions and the Raptors are not a team to sleep on either.  The Bulls did not make any major moves this offseason, but will be getting Luol Deng back from injury, which is like a major acquisition.  Still, it’s not going to be easy to break into the upper echelon of teams in the conference, especially with Washington getting Gilbert Arenas back and landing Randy Foye and Mike Miller as well.

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Hinrich Confident He’s Staying in Chicago

Kirk Hinrich recently said that he thinks he’s a part of the Bulls’ future plans.  “I think they want to keep me,” he said.  ”If they didn’t, they’d probably have done the deal with Portland.”  It has been widely rumored that Portland tried to pry the guard from Chicago, as Hinrich is a favorite of Portland general manager Kevin Pritchard.  No deal was made and the Blazers eventually signed Andre Miller.  Hinrich acknowledged that he can never rule out the possibility of a trade, though, and he’s always prepared for one.  “You have to, that’s what the job calls for,” he said.  ”I feel fortunate I’ve been with a great organization.  I’d love to spend my whole career here.  I’ve kind of made Chicago my home.  But a good buddy of mine, Drew Gooden has been on six teams in seven years.”

Hinrich, who found himself in a bit of a reduced role last season, should play a major part for the Bulls this season.  He should get time as the backup to both starting guards, Derrick Rose and John Salmons, as he is versatile enough to play both positions.  He gives the team a lot of flexibility in the backcourt.

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Big Year For Thomas

Tyrus Thomas will be a big factor in the Chicago Bulls’ 2009-10 season.  He’s penciled in as the starting power forward, but he’s been inconsistent throughout his career as he seems to fancy himself as some kind of perimeter player.  He’s got all the potential in the word, though.  By the Horns sums up Thomas’ career thus far.  ” Tremendous upside potential,” their blog says.  ”Those three words explain why, on the night of the 2006 NBA Draft, the Bulls traded the draft rights to LaMarcus Aldridge (the second overall pick) and a future second round draft choice to the Portland Trail Blazers for the draft rights to Tyrus Thomas (the fourth overall pick) and throw-in Viktor Khryapa.”

“The belief was (apparently) that Thomas had the potential to be a much better professional basketball player than Aldridge,” it continues.  ”And that may even be the case…someday.  It hasn’t happened so far, though. Aldridge has been better, and Bulls management, coaches and fans are still waiting for Thomas to live up to his potential.”  It’s true that Aldridge has been a much more productive player in Portland than Thomas has been in Chicago, but Thomas had his best season last year and could really step things up as he could hit restricted free agency next summer.

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The X-Factor

If there is an x-factor for the 2009-2010 Chicago Bulls, it’s Luol Deng.  Deng missed much of last season with an injury and hasn’t really been 100 percent healthy for the past two seasons.  Three years ago he was on the verge of being an All-Star-caliber player and looked to be one of the games rising stars.  With Derrick Rose now seated as the franchise player of this organization, Deng has become the forgotten man to some degree.  But keep in mind that the forward is only 24 years old and still has plenty of basketball ahead of him.

“Deng has good size at his position, a strong frame, a long wingspan, decent athleticism, fantastic versatility and (by all accounts) and outstanding work ethic,” it says on his scouting report on By the Horns.  ”In other words, he has the tools and talent necessary to approach greatness.  About the only thing he can’t do is stick the three. I f Deng comes anywhere close to reaching his potential this season - or even if he reverts to the Luol of 2006-07 - the Bulls could be much better than most people suspect.”  Deng could be the running mate that Derrick Rose needs to take this team to another level.

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Rookie Rankings

ESPN’s David Thorpe ranks the current NBA rookies according to how they looked to him in the summer leagues.  Thorpe lists Bulls rookie James Johnson in the “Best of the Rest” category, which is the best players outside the top 20, described as “Some of these guys are second-round guys; others are first-rounders who looked OK in summer league but are stuck behind too many good players.”  “He showed excellent talent as a passer and had some impressive moments during summer league,” he writes of Johnson.  ”But with Luol Deng, John Salmons, Tyrus Thomas and Joakim Noah in front of him at the 3 and 4 spots, how much will he play?”

It’s a good point that Thorpe makes about Johnson’s projected lack of playing time.  Johnson is not all that NBA-ready right now and has to work on a number of skills to become a complete NBA player.  He’s also a bit of a tweener more than a versatile guy that can play both forward positions well at this point.  I still think the Bulls should have taken a chance on DeJuan Blair to add some toughness and rebounding inside, but Johnson certainly has his upside.  He’ll have time to develop while sitting the bench this season.

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Inside Scoring

We’ve discussed the Bulls’ lack of a big-time scorer on the block at length on this blog.  TrueHoop’s Kevin Arnovitz offers some insight into why the Bulls didn’t need one down the stretch last season.  “There’s a reason why any time a marquee big man comes on the market, he’s rumored to be headed to Chicago,” Arnovitz writes.  ”But desperate as the Bulls are for help on a threat on the block, we saw something interesting down the stretch last season.  Rather than resign themselves to their lack of post scoring, the Bulls began to use Joakim Noah and Tyrus Thomas in pick and roll schemes, where their agility allowed them to beat their defenders to the rim.  So long as Thomas resisted launching jump shots, it worked.”

“Noah doesn’t have the jumper to be a high-post center (like backup Brad Miller), but his passing and mobility around the hoop might be enough in Chicago’s offense,” he continues.  ”Thomas, of course, is the wild card.  A composite of his finest moments last season would show him as a defensive ace, capable of creating opportunities for himself off the dribble, hitting a face-up jumper, and blocking any shot in medium proximity.  If that highlight reel can become a reality, if Deng can bounce back, and if Rose can continue his course as one of the game’s best young playmakers, the Bulls might turn their novelty act from last spring into a long-run production in 2010.”  That’s a lot of “ifs,” but the Bulls look to be headed in the right direction.

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Deng is Key

Luol Deng’s return to the Bulls at 100 percent health is paramount to the team’s success this season and moving forward.  Deng hasn’t been fully healthy for two seasons now, but when he is he’s a really good player.  “There are good reasons sleepers are sleepers, and the caveats for Chicago reside in its frontcourt,” writes TrueHoops’s Kevin Arnovitz.  ”Start at small forward, where Luol Deng will be returning from a stress fracture in his right leg.  He last played in a game on February 28.  When 100 percent, Deng is a rangy, athletic force in transition and in the halfcourt, where his height and handle give him a big advantage over most defenders at the small forward.  When Deng is on his game, he’s also the correct answer to the question, ‘Who’s going to make up for Ben Gordon’s 20.7 points per game?’”

Deng’s best performance came in the 2006-07 campaign, in which he averaged 19 points and seven rebounds while shooting 52 percent from the floor.  The Bulls awarded him with a hefty contract last summer in the hope that he was the team’s franchise player.  Well, Derrick Rose is the franchise player now, which should take some pressure of Deng.

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