Chicago Bulls: Is Luol Deng More Valuable Than Derrick Rose?

Derrick Rose is the undisputed leader of the Chicago Bulls who is capable both facilitating and carrying the team to victory.

 Luol Deng is Chicago’s most versatile player who contributes to the team in every facet of the game.

Chicago has played five games this season without their undisputed leader and amassed a 4-1 record.

Luol Deng has missed seven consecutive games and is expected to miss more. So far, the Bulls have accrued a 4-3 record. The most recent win against the New York Knicks could’ve very easily went the other way.

In the Rose-less stretch of the season Chicago still played pretty solid basketball on both ends of the court.

The offense was able to put up a respectable 98.2 points per game while the defense was still able to lock down opponents holding them to just 85.4 points per game.

With the exception of a complete breakdown against the Memphis Grizzlies, the Bulls received contributions from just about everyone on the roster to help continue their early season winning ways.

Over the course of this continuing stretch without Deng, the Bulls have gone 4-3 scoring 97.8 points and allowing 96.4 points, a significantly narrower margin of victory.

While Chicago ended their stretch without Rose on three game-winning streak, they have yet to even post consecutive wins sans Deng.

These contrasting performances bring up a very intriguing question.

Is Luol Deng more important to the Bulls’ success than Derrick Rose?

The big swing in points allowed obviously shows that the defense is severely lacking stopping power without Deng on the floor; however, other major categories show very little change.

The Bulls currently average 44.9 rebounds per game. That number was slightly higher without Rose at 45.6 and a little lower without Deng, 42.1.

Their 22.3 assists per game average was virtually the same without Rose at 22.6 and less than one assist lower without Deng, 21.5.

Chicago’s 96.3 overall points scored average is actually below what the team averaged without Rose and Deng.

Despite these statistical similarities, and intentionally omitting the obvious defensive disparities, it is the offensive aspect where the Bulls have suffered more than what one might have thought.

The most evident observation that can made here is that Rose’s scoring has gone up (28.4 ppg), but his assists have gone down (6.7 apg) without Deng being active.

Despite the overall team assist average not budging much, there is an obvious lack of offensive continuity without Deng on the court to keep the ball moving. This problem has been exacerbated with Richard Hamilton’s absence, as well.

Without Deng, there's no one on the floor who demands enough respect to keep a wing defender from helping on Rose.

Kyle Korver can keep running off multiple screens, but Ronnie Brewer still isn’t enough of an offensive threat to keep his defender honest.

Without Deng presenting that second scoring/assist option, the burden to either score or create falls exclusively to Rose.

This void causes Chicago to fall back into the same habits of seasons' past of Rose handling the ball while the bigs set picks and everyone else just kind of stands around.

The assist average remains comparable, but it doesn’t come from continuous ball movement allowing everyone to both touch and move without the ball. Rose merely drives and passes. That stagnation severely hinders player contributions.

This team relapse is the biggest adverse side-effect of Deng’s absence.

But still, is he more valuable to the team than Rose?

The short answer is no. The explanative answer requires a look at who the Bull played in each player’s absence.

Chicago’s stretch without Rose was against teams that did not have winning records. Their losses without Deng were to the Indiana Pacers, Miami Heat and Philadelphia 76ers. Those were teams who could’ve beaten Chicago even if the Bulls were fully manned.

This doesn’t necessarily mean that Rose is more valuable than Deng either. The deficiencies shown in both players’ absences underscore the importance of the Bulls needing both men on the floor in order to have the best chances of winning.

Both Rose and Deng do so many things so well that they are able to make up for a supporting player’s shortages more than a reserve player can pick up Rose and Deng’s slack during their absence.

The Bulls are a complete team, and that totality works both to their benefit and to their detriment. They are nearly unstoppable with all hands on deck but often struggle when key players are absent.

Deng’s time off calls attention to some of the other areas in which Chicago could use improvement.

The value of Rose and Deng are equivocally apparent, and the one thing that's for sure is that the Bulls need them both if they are going to win a title.