Top 2016 Offseason Priorities for the Chicago Bulls
The Chicago Bulls’ season is over, and for the first time since 2007-08 (and the second time since 2003-04), they are not in the playoffs.
Those are pretty dismal results for a team who had lofty expectations of making the Eastern Conference Finals.
Injury, infighting, indifference and inconsistency all stymied Chicago. To re-establish itself as a postseason team, it must take decisive action this summer and resolve these issues. Yes, the Bulls will make some personnel moves, and they should add shooting, but those things are nominal.
There are far more pressing issues, which, if the Bulls don’t address, nothing else they do will be of consequence.
Honorable "Not Going to Happen" Mention
Many might want to see action and a change in the front office, but K.C. Johnson of the Chicago Tribune reports that, according to comments made by Bulls' general manager Gar Forman and executive vice president of basketball operations John Paxson at the season's conclusion, that is unlikely to happen:
""Gar and I are accountable for what this team did this year," executive vice president of basketball operations John Paxson said. "We don't run away from it. We accept it. That's on us."
Paxson said the jobs of [head coach Fred] Hoiberg and general manager Gar Forman are safe. Chairman Jerry Reinsdorf released a statement backing his management team and thanking fans for sticking with a team that "fell far short of our expectations." Reinsdorf vowed to be "strategic and aggressive" in improving the team, promising the "resources needed."
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Exactly how someone is “accountable” without consequences is a mystery. But that’s a story for another day. The front office isn’t changing.
Injuries: It’s Time for a Makeover
Injuries matter. People can call them excuses all they want, but until basketball isn’t determined by who is on the court, they are legitimate reasons. When injuries smash a team, then the team tends to lose more games.
The Bulls have had this problem for the last five seasons, and this year was the worst one yet. They missed a total of 202 games from their top nine players, which is a frightening 2.5 players missing per game for the season.
A team is not going to win a lot of games when it's missing more than a quarter of its rotation for the full season. And when, year after year, the Bulls are one of the most injured teams in the league, there might be more at play than bad luck.
At what point do the Bulls start looking at making changes in the training staff?
The Bulls just can’t afford to keep killing careers before their stars turn 30. Luol Deng, Derrick Rose and Joakim Noah all are/were older than their age because of their injury histories. Now Jimmy Butler is in danger of joining that company.
Furthermore, some players aren’t going to get healthy. The damage has been done, and the Bulls have to be careful not to commit a ton of money to a player who isn’t going to stay on the court, no matter how much he has done for the organization.
It would be a major mistake to bring back Pau Gasol (more on that later), but even Noah must be approached with caution. The Bulls need a mini rebuild and must use this summer as an opportunity to pivot younger, more athletic, faster and healthier players.
Infighting and Indifference: It’s Time for a Make Up
Infighting brings indifference and indifference breeds infighting. As long as the Bulls are caught in that cycle, they won’t be going anywhere.
There’s some sort of disconnect over the leadership of the team. After the Bulls were eliminated in last year's playoffs, Dan Bernstein of 670 the Score reported a "beef" between Butler and Rose, one which Butler denied.
But then Joe Cowley of the Chicago Sun-Times reported that according to a source:
"Butler considers Rose a friend, but “doesn’t have a lot of respect for his work ethic.’’ In Butler’s mind, Rose was considered the face of the franchise, and if the face of the franchise wasn’t busting his butt in practice every day, especially last season, what was the message to the rest of the team?
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Nick Friedell of ESPN reported Butler also took shots at both coach Hoiberg and his teammates in December, saying:
""I believe in the guys in this locker room, yeah," Butler said when asked whether a shakeup was needed for players to get a message. "But I also believe that we probably have to be coached a lot harder at times. I'm sorry. I know Fred's a laid-back guy and I really respect him for that, but when guys aren't doing what they're supposed to do, you got to get on guys. Myself included. You got to do what you're supposed to do when you're out there playing basketball."
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Gasol appears to be intent on leaving because of the atmosphere, telling Friedell:
"“Nothing is set right now,” Gasol said after the game. “Definitely, I will evaluate what I need to when the time comes. But the way the team has responded to adversity and the way we finished up the season has not been so far great, and it’s been disappointing. So at the end of the day, when the time comes, I will evaluate things. It’s hard to finish the season like this. It’s not finished, but we’re in a very, as we know, extremely difficult position, so everything will be thought of and considered.”
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The Bulls need to get on the same page, and that’s not going to happen as long as Butler and Rose, or anyone, are at odds. On the court, there were times those two worked together, but more often than not, they seemed to be arm-wrestling for control of the team.
Butler told Cowley that he and Rose are planning to work out together this summer and why:
"“That’s more time that we can just spend together,’’ he said. “We know each other’s games pretty well from being around each other on the court, but in the offseason, it will let me know where he really wants the ball, what he’s really, really good at, and the same way for him with me.
When you’re seeing each other work out and train, you gain a lot of respect for the individual because you see them putting in their time, you know what I mean? I’m not saying that I don’t respect him, but if he sees how much I’m in the gym every day and I see how much he’s in the gym every day, you know that you rhyme with that individual, and I think that’s a very important thing.
It’s going to be great for both of us.’’
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Injuries to both players have hindered their ability to find chemistry. According to Basketball-Reference.com’s Play Index, the duo has played together 3,025 minutes during their five years as teammates. By comparison, Trevor Ariza and James Harden of the Houston Rockets had 2,603 just this year.
The Bulls’ backcourt needs to find chemistry and brotherhood. When they do that, they can lead together and put any sense of disharmony behind them. When they get along, the team will too, and when the locker room isn’t a giant squabble-fest, the group will find its passion.
Inconsistency: Making It All Come Together
In fairness to the Bulls missing the playoffs, they are the best Eastern Conference team to stay home since the Washington Wizards went 42-20 in 1999.
They were 3-1 against the Cleveland Cavaliers. They swept the Oklahoma City Thunder and the Toronto Raptors. They split their games with the San Antonio Spurs.
They also got clobbered by opponents like the Minnesota Timberwolves, Phoenix Suns, Denver Nuggets and Milwaukee Bucks. Not winning the games they were supposed to win is the reason Chicago isn’t in the playoffs.
Resolving the problems above is the only way to address the inconsistency. It’s hard to be a steady winner when your lineup is changing every game, and the Bulls started 25 different quintets this season, none more than 12 games.
When you throw the personal conflicts into that changing chemistry dynamic, it’s hard to believe the Bulls managed a winning record. The Memphis Grizzlies were bombarded by injuries too, but veteran guidance kept them in the postseason.
Getting younger and healthier with a more competent training staff led by a cohesive leadership from Butler and Rose are the keys to the Bulls turnaround. If the team doesn’t address those, then peripheral rosters changes won’t make a bit of difference.
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