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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Bulls a Sleeper

TrueHoop’s Kevin Arnovitz declares the Chicago Bulls as a team not to sleep on in 2009-10.  He acknowledges that Ben Gordon will be missed on some nights, but the Bulls are better off without him in the long run.  “Although there will be nights when Gordon’s fearlessness as a sniper will be missed, the Bulls might be better served long-term by the three-guard rotation of Derrick Rose, Kirk Hinrich, and John Salmons,” Arnovitz writes.  ”With Gordon out of the picture, Rose can assert himself both as distributor and scorer.  He’s a transcendent young point guard, and one that should flourish now that his running mates in the backcourt are a little more pliable.”

“Both Rose and Hinrich are expert ball handlers — and Hinrich is very comfortable off the ball as well,” he continues.  ”Salmons, along with Hinrich, is capable of defending all three perimeter positions, can score on pin-downs, slash to the rack, and fire from 3-point range (41.7 percent).”  Hinrich’s versatility makes a three-guard rotation possible for the Bulls.  He’s got experience playing both positions in the back court and should make things a lot easier on head coach Vinny Del Negro.  Salmons, who saw a lot of time at small forward last season, is better-suited for the two and his positional slide makes room for Luol Deng.

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East Seeds

ESPN.com’s John Hollinger has the Bulls ranked on the second tier of teams in the Eastern Conference along with the Miami Heat and Atlanta Hawks.  The top tier consists of the Orlando Magic, Cleveland Cavaliers and Boston Celtics.  On the third tier he’s got the Toronto Raptors and Washington Wizards.  It looks like those are the eight teams that Hollinger expects to make the playoffs in 2009-10.  If one goes by the order in which he lists the teams, Orlando would be the top seed, Cleveland the two, Boston the three, Atlanta the four, Chicago the five, Miami the six, Toronto the seven and Washington the eight.

I think Hollinger has the top three correct, as those three teams appears to be on a different level than everyone else in the conference, but I disagree with him on the fourth seed.  I think Washington is going to be a real threat this season.  Gilbert Arenas is finally healthy for the first time in two years and is reportedly back in full form.  The additions of Randy Foye and Mike Miller were really good as well.  The Bulls could feasibly take the fifth seed, but I think it’s more likely that they land at six or seven.

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Rose Growing Up

Chicago Bulls pint guard Derrick Rose recently spoke publicly for the first time since a photo of him flashing a gang sign surfaced earlier this summer.  “I’m not a kid anymore,” Rose said.  ”I’m always in a spotlight.  [I'm] the leader probably of this team, [I] gotta be the leader of this team, and I can’t do foolish things anymore.”  Rose was also involved in an alleged scandal where his SAT scores came into question.  Rose denied any wrongdoing concerning the test.  “That didn’t bother me at all, I know I didn’t do anything wrong,” Rose said.  ”That was up to Memphis what they had to do.”

“Coach [John Calipari] told me, ‘Don’t worry about it,’” Rose continued.  ”I definitely wasn’t worried about it.  I was still working out, so I just let [the scandal] pass.”  It’s encouraging to hear Rose talk about being a leader of this team.  He’s unquestionably the franchise player in Chicago and should be for a long time.  He’s made a few minor mistakes, but there is generally no concern about his character.  Rose is a humble kid who works hard to get better every day.  He’s got almost limitless potential and should become a great player.

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Youth Must Prevail

Earlier this week, we talked about how ESPN’s John Hollinger pointed out that the Bulls could reasonably pick up the slack of Ben Gordon by getting guys like Luol Deng, John Salmons and Kirk Hinrich healthy this season.  Hollinger goes into another factor that could help the Bulls this season.  “The other big factor in Chicago’s favor is the likely improvement of young players like Derrick Rose, Joakim Noah and Tyrus Thomas,” Hollinger wrote.  ”That’s not a ‘nice to have,’ though; it’s imperative.  The kids have to get better, because the Bulls didn’t sign any players as they gear up for a free-agent run next summer.  In fact, it’s possible they’ll trade Thomas or Hinrich to have more cap space left over.”

Rose and Noah definitely seem like part of the team’s future plans.  Rose is a cornerstone of the franchise and looks to be a star in the making.  His ceiling is nearly endless and the sky is the limit for this point guard.  Noah is developing into a quality center.  He’s athletic and energetic and protects the rim well.  He’s still learning the game and may never develop offensively, but he’s a good player to have in the middle.

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