Taj Gibson Says Chicago Bulls Feel Like They're in 'Major League' Movie

The Chicago Bulls have continued to face nearly unmatched adversity in 2013-14, but power forward Taj Gibson made light of the team’s grim situation by comparing it to the movie “Major League.”

“We understand it’s kind of like the movie ‘Major League,’” Gibson said, according to ESPN’s Nick Friedell. “We’ve got that mentality where we believe in the locker room. We believe in what we think. And we’re taking it one game at a time and we’re trying to get those wins hopefully to see ... get a good, nice poster at the end of the year.”

Gibson is referencing a part in the movie when the Cleveland Indians’ fictitious manager Lou Brown (played by actor James Gammon) puts together a cardboard cutout with the owner’s head attached and a speech bubble that reads: "You Guys Stink!" For each game the team wins, a small piece of clothing is removed from the cutout.

Credit: realtvcritics.com

If you haven’t seen the movie, Indians owner Rachel Phelps (played by Margaret Whitton) tries to relocate the team to Miami by making the team bad enough to drop attendance.

Friedell asked Gibson who would be on the Bulls' version of the cutout and got the following answer:

“We haven’t figured that out yet,” Gibson said with a smile. "But that’s kind of the way we’re going at it. That’s what Joakim started. Joakim said it, and I’ve just been running with it.”

Let’s just hope the poster the Bulls choose is a better option than this:

Photoshop job courtesy of Kenny Dorset.

First, Chicago lost Derrick Rose again (perhaps for the season) due to a meniscus tear. Earlier this month, Bulls general manager Gar Forman pulled the trigger on a deal to send Luol Deng to the Cleveland Cavaliers in exchange for the cap space created by Andrew Bynum’s non-guaranteed contract.

In theory, the swap was going to make the Bulls worse, but the opposite narrative has played out. They’re 4-1 since the trade. Needless to say, the Bulls players have no intention of tanking.

In fact, with regard to fans who believe the team should tank, Joakim Noah said, per Friedell, “I don’t say nothing to those fans. It’s all good. You’re allowed to have your opinion. It’s just … that’s not a real fan to me. You know what I’m saying? You want your team to lose? What is that?”

You have to love the pride and effort that’s oozing out of the Bulls locker room.