Chicago Bulls' Depth Working Exactly as Planned

The Chicago Bulls have had surprising regular season results in recent years. Despite losing Derrick Rose and various other key players to prolonged injury issues, they compiled a .567 winning percentage over the past two seasons, including two playoff berths and a second-round appearance in 2012.

This has led Bulls optimists to wonder just how competitive a deep Chicago roster could be. If coach Tom Thibodeau could muster so many wins out of a scarce rotation, just how impressive of a record could he compile with a team that’s much richer in talent?

Now that Rose is (at least part of the time) healthy, and the Bulls have brought Pau Gasol, Aaron Brooks, Nikola Mirotic and Doug McDermott to town, we’re getting the beginning of our answer. Even with Rose missing several games in November and Joakim Noah, Jimmy Butler, Taj Gibson and Gasol sitting for some some action as well, the Bulls are sitting near the top of the Eastern Conference with an 8-4 record.

The Bulls have had exactly two games in which their full starting lineup was on the floor together. And now one of their key reserves, Kirk Hinrich, looks like he'll miss time with a chest contusion sustained in a 103-88 loss to the Sacramento Kings on November 20. Bodies will fall—that's what the deep lineup is for.

The best example of their terrific new depth came in a November 17 road victory against the Los Angeles Clippers. Rose (hamstring) and Gasol (calf), the team’s two best scorers, watched in suits from the sidelines as a surging Jimmy Butler led a balanced Chicago attack to convincing 105-89 victory. A fully healthy Clippers squad looked lost as six Bulls tallied double figures in points, and the team also collected eight assists more than their counterpart.

The play of Mirotic was especially telling. The 6’10” rookie has—like most rookies—played erratically at times in the early goings. But here he looked every bit the part of a nightly rotation player, spreading the L.A. defense with the threat of his three-point shot and decisively pump-faking, driving and breaking the Clippers down when they rushed him.

On any given night, Mirotic is one of many Chicago players who can go off. Even without a ton of health, continuity and time together, this team is smart and talented enough to figure out winning ways quickly.

The almost shockingly strong play of Butler goes a long way toward making the team deeper. When you’ve got one of the NBA’s five best shooting guards starting for you—which is what the fourth-year player has looked like in recent days—it eases the perimeter work of Rose, Kirk Hinrich and Mike Dunleavy Jr. considerably. When a merely good player becomes great, it makes the whole team look better.

As Clippers coach Glenn “Doc” Rivers said to reporters after the game, “I didn't know he was going to be this good.” K.C. Johnson of the Chicago Tribune describes Butler’s blossoming this way: “It's hard to believe after his underwhelming first season as a starting shooting guard, but with his defense remaining at an elite level and Butler averaging a team-high 21.3 points on 50.8 percent shooting, All-Star conversation will continue if this play does.”

In other words: Even some of the most irrationally hopeful Bulls fans are finding themselves surprised by how many options their team now has. With Butler playing like he is, they’re a veritable scoring powerhouse, ranking in the top 10 of offensive efficiency for the first time in a long time, even with so many games off from their studs.

Also key to the victory in Lob City was Taj Gibson, a big man who would start on nearly any other team. He got the start against the Clippers, but only because Gasol was out. And in his time, he more than proved his worth—he grabbed 20 points on 9-of-13 shooting, gathering six assists and five rebounds along the way. He also hawked the rim defensively, making L.A. hesitant to do anything but settle for jumpers.

The victory over Los Angeles is, of course, just one game. And it’s too early to make lasting decisions about how good the Bulls’ offense is, and just how deep they are. Things change quickly in the NBA. But the forecast, for now, is very good for the Bulls, and it should surprise no one if their ultimate record is in the area of 60 wins—with or without their nagging injuries.

While it would take a fully healthy roster to take things a step further and compete for the team's ultimate goal—a championship—there should be little doubt they can push things as far as the Eastern Conference finals with a missing body or two. The Bulls have shown us over two seasons their "next man up" ethos produces real results. So now that the roster's men are better from top to bottom, we can safely predict increased returns.