Following the Chicago Bulls recent loss to the Oklahoma City Thunder rookie head coach Vinnie Del Negro had this to say, "Their effort was better. That is not acceptable".

I'll tell you what is not acceptable: the talent level of the current Bulls roster, the strange substitution patterns and rotations of coach Del Negro, and losing a home game to the Thunder.

Oklahoma City won on the road for only the second time this season when they beat the Bulls 109-98 in overtime Saturday night at the United Center.

The loss snaps a two-game winning streak for the Bulls and could be the start of the Bulls solidifying their place in the lottery bound line.

With home games coming up against Portland, San Antonio, Cleveland, Atlanta, and Toronto, and road contests versus Toronto and New York, it may be Jan. 25 before the Bulls win another game, when they visit Minnesota. Even that game is no guarantee for these Bulls, who managed to lose at home to the T-Wolves earlier this season.

The worst of all of this, at least if you're a Bulls fan, is that there is no hope in sight. Yes, the promising play of rookie phenom Derrick Rose has got fans chattering, but last time I checked, it takes five guys to fill out a lineup.

This year's roster, along with the season, is unsalvageable; the only thing Bulls fans should be hoping for is lots of playing time to develop Rose, and a high lottery pick.

Next year, however, does not look any more promising. Ben Gordon, who other than Rose is the only guy on the Bulls roster who actually has some value and talent, is almost certainly gone in the offseason as a free agent, leaving a gaping hole at shooting guard to fill.

The Bulls frontcourt is almost laughable. Drew Gooden is a serviceable role playing big man in this league. He is not the supposed to be the center piece to your frontcourt. He is also a free agent at the end of the season, and will most likely not be back.

General Manager John Paxson hit some big shots as a player for the Bulls, but as GM, he's been firing air-balls. Trading Tyrus Thomas for LaMarcus Aldridge has not worked out how he'd hoped. Joakim Noah, 2007's lottery pick, has zero basketball skills, and his swap of Rodney Carney for Thabo Sefolosha has proved to be a poor move as well.

Then this offseason he had to make a choice between resigning Luol Deng or Ben Gordon. Paxson severely overpaid to keep Deng, despite injury concerns, and a reputation for disappearing down the stretch.

Deng has done nothing this season to dispell any of those notions.

So let's see where that leaves. Next season the Bulls will lose Gooden and Gordon, and currently have eight players who will be under contract that year. This list includes Larry Hughes, who's biggest value right now is his large contract that expires in 2010 and Andres Nocioni, a guy who was once a fan favorite, but now does little more than take poor shots and play bad defense.

Despite his shortcomings, Nocioni still has some trade value in the league, and if Paxson can off load him for an expiring contract, he should do it without hesitation.

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