Chicago Bulls' Roster Is in Good Hands Regardless of Derrick Rose's Future
The winds of change are sweeping through the Chicago Bulls, but the NBA's most adaptable franchise is built to roll with the punches.
Their current building blocks are aging (Joakim Noah), injured (Derrick Rose) or perhaps unhappy (Tom Thibodeau). However, a new set of cornerstones is already emerging in fourth-year swingman Jimmy Butler and rookie forward Nikola Mirotic.
Whether the organization needs to redraft its blueprint or simply modify the one it's been using, there's a stable foundation in place to support the alteration.
Jimmy Gets Buckets—and Anything Else the Bulls Need
For all the narratives produced during this season—Rose's return and subsequent exit, Thibodeau's latest sparring session with the front office, Pau Gasol's All-Star comeback—none has carried the importance of Butler's rapid rise.
Always a dogged defender, the 25-year-old has proved himself capable of serving as an offensive catalyst.
Once viewed as a complementary piece, Butler has seamlessly transitioned into a featured role.
He might be the league's hardest-working player. No one has averaged more minutes than Butler's 38.9, nor covered more ground on a nightly basis (2.8 miles per game).
The heavy burden may help explain the career numbers slotted in virtually all of his counting categories, but the quantity should have come at a cost. Volume rarely works in tandem with efficiency, but he has masterfully blended the two together.
Both his 58.2 true shooting percentage and 122 offensive rating are personal bests. His career-high 21.8 usage percentage has somehow also yielded the top player efficiency rating he's ever had. His assist percentage has never been higher (14.1) and his turnover percentage has never been lower (7.8).
"He's a star, and he does it on both ends of the floor," Thibodeau said of Butler earlier this season, per ESPNChicago.com's Nick Friedell. "He's just an amazing player. ... He's smart, he's tough, he does whatever the team needs."
Defensively, Butler has the drive, determination and discipline to lock down the opposition's best perimeter player. At the other end, his floor presence has netted this offense an extra 2.2 points per 100 possessions compared to its production without him.
Given that this is only Butler's second season as a full-time starter, he's just scratching the surface of his full potential.
"He's always had the heart, and he's always had the toughness, and now he's put it all together with his game," Dwyane Wade said of Butler, per Sports Illustrated's Ben Golliver.
Nikola Mirotic's Rising Stock
Speaking of ceilings that can't be seen from the ground floor, has any freshman pushed his career trajectory higher than Mirotic?
The only thing capable of containing the European import has been Thibs' notoriously short leash with first-year players. But injuries forced Mirotic into action, and his play has demanded a permanent rotation spot going forward.
| Oct.-Nov. | 17.0 | 6.6 | 4.8 | 111 | 100 |
| Dec. | 19.1 | 9.9 | 5.7 | 124 | 101 |
| Jan. | 17.1 | 6.4 | 2.9 | 101 | 105 |
| Feb. | 14.3 | 5.8 | 3.6 | 102 | 96 |
| March | 31.2 | 20.6 | 7.7 | 108 | 103 |
Holy March Madness, Mirotic.
During this month, the rookie has averaged more points than Klay Thompson and Tony Parker, more rebounds than Tim Duncan and Marc Gasol, and more free-throw attempts (7.3) than Wade and LeBron James.
"I think it's exceptional what he's doing," Gasol said, per Friedell. "Especially this month has been spectacular."
Mirotic has played 14 games in March and cleared the 20-point mark in half of them. The 6'10" scoring forward is an unbelievably tough cover. He can put up points both inside and out, create scoring chances off the bounce and even blast defenders with museum-quality poster dunks.
"When you watch him on film, he has that combination of size and skill. That is what you win with in this league," Charlotte Hornets coach Steve Clifford said, per Bulls.com's Sam Smith. "He lends versatility to their defense. He can shoot with range, he can post and he can drive the ball."
And Mirotic's track record says he's only getting started.
Prior to his NBA debut, the Montenegrin had a wildly successful career overseas, twice receiving the Euroleague Rising Star award and earning MVP honors in 2013 for Spain's ACB League—widely considered the game's top professional league outside of the NBA.
Mirotic has logged 30-plus minutes in 14 games this season. During those contests, he's put up 20.7 points and 9.3 rebounds. Only three players—Anthony Davis, LaMarcus Aldridge and DeMarcus Cousins—have averaged at least 20 points and nine boards this year.
"That’s his floor, and those are All-Star-caliber numbers," Bleacher Report's Kelly Scaletta wrote of Mirotic. "Ergo it’s not unreasonable to conclude that once he starts getting starter minutes, he’ll be an All-Star."
Between Butler and Mirotic, the Bulls are in good hands—even if the ones that previously carried them appear as steady as an earthquake.
Changing of the Chicago Guard
Time only knows the lasting impact of Rose's third knee surgery since April 2012.
The good news is this seems to be the least serious of the three. He hasn't played since Feb. 23, but said he's a week or two away from contact work and another few weeks from getting back inside the lines, per K.C. Johnson of the Chicago Tribune.
With that said, it's impossible not to wonder how much damage has already been done.
Even before this injury, Rose hadn't looked like himself. The career 45.3 percent shooter was converting only 40.7 percent of his attempts. His aggressiveness wasn't the same, and he was firing up shots from a farther average distance than ever before (14.1 feet from the basket).
Once word of his torn meniscus broke, it shattered the hopes of him ever finding his old MVP form. Just look at the reactions of three different NBA.com analysts below:
- Fran Blinebury: "When you lose your franchise player for the third time in four years, it's probably time to look at a reboot at the point."
- Scott Howard-Cooper: "This is the moment for me that says once and for all the Bulls cannot rely on Rose to get through 82 games and an entire postseason."
- Shaun Powell: "Let's not try to kid anyone here: The Bulls can no longer revolve around Rose."
The only thing certain about Rose's future with the Bulls is that one surely exists. It's hard to imagine any team taking on the $41.4 million he'll collect over the next two seasons, and harder still to see Chicago accepting a pennies-on-the-dollar return for its decorated native son.
But Rose's status has changed from focal point to wild card. Maybe he'll be a supportive starter or a spark-plug reserve going forward. Maybe his body will prevent him from being even that much.
Either way, his days of carrying the torch seem relegated to the history books. It's not as if Noah has the two-way talent—and maybe not even the health—to take the baton. At 34 years old, Gasol isn't a long-term option, either.
And then there's the issue of Thibodeau's rocky relationship with team execs.
For one reason or another, he can't seem to find common ground with general manager Gar Forman and vice president of basketball operations John Paxson.
"Team Forman/Paxson has its beliefs that the players are not being managed correctly, or at least not to Forman and Paxon's specifications," wrote ESPN.com's Scoop Jackson. "Team Thibodeau has his belief deeply rooted in a process that has proven to lead to victories and overachievement."
The two parties don't speak publicly of the schism, but the billowing smoke clouds above Chicago suggest a blazing inferno exists.
Several league sources told Johnson that the relationship is broken "beyond repair." ESPN.com's Marc Stein wrote that "it is widely—and I mean widely—believed" that Chicago has already set its sights on Iowa State's Fred Hoiberg as a replacement for Thibodeau if the coach isn't retained at season's end.
"It would have been nice if things were different, especially with all the expectations this season," a veteran player told Joe Cowley of the Chicago Sun-Times. "It just feels like there isn’t a whole lot of support for [Thibodeau]."
Analysts are hearing it. Players are feeling it.
Maybe a lengthy playoff run would be enough to convince both sides the partnership is worth continuing, but the Bulls need things they haven't had all season to pull that off: health and good fortune.
This franchise as we know it could be headed for an overhaul. Thanks to the young talent on this roster, though, change doesn't have to be a bad thing.
Finding Promise in Uncertainty
Assuming the Bulls bring back Butler after his venture into restricted free agency, they'll have at least two legitimate stars to build around in him and Mirotic.
Those are the locks, but there's a chance they could have so much more.
Gasol's finesse game should age gracefully. If Noah gets back to 100 percent, he's still one of the most disruptive defensive centers in the business. Consistency could be an issue for Rose, but his good nights are among the very best.
Provided Taj Gibson isn't moved to create cap space or buy more minutes for Mirotic, he is as steady as any second-teamer in the league.
And the Bulls have some young talent that could either grow with Thibodeau or thrive with a longer leash given by a new coach.
Tony Snell has shown flashes of potential as a three-and-D wing. Doug McDermott hasn't had the opportunity to show much of anything, but his bag of scoring tricks is overflowing nonetheless.
"He's going to be a really, really good player," Mike Dunleavy said of McDermott, per Cowley. "He's got a big-time talent: his ability to score. That transfers from the college level to the NBA level."
Once you look past the dark clouds of the unknown, you'll find a bright future for this franchise.
Some faces might change from the present, the identity could be different from the one this team has forged, but the end results should be the same.
Whether subtle tweaks or major modifications await them, the Bulls should still be an Eastern Conference force either way.
Unless otherwise noted, statistics used courtesy of Basketball-Reference.com and NBA.com. Salary information obtained via HoopsHype.com.
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