Chicago Bulls 2008 Preview: Behind Luol Deng, Bulls Armed for Playoffs

The Chicago Bulls' offseason has been one for the ages. Between winning the lottery despite a one percent chance and the rumors swirling about Ben Gordon heading overseas, the Bulls have been busy.

Chicago returns not only every starter, but virtually every bench player. On paper, this Bulls team goes three deep at each position, and you're asking yourself, "Where was this team last year?"—you're not alone.

The Bulls' 2007 campaign was marred by injuries and underachievement. This is what we sports fans like to call "not playing as a team." To help rectify this problem, the Bulls drafted Memphis star point guard Derrick Rose with the No. 1 overall pick. Rose joins a backcourt that features team captain Kirk Hinrich, shooting sensation Ben Gordon, savvy veteran Larry Hughes, and emerging star Thabo Sefolosha.

The frontcourt for the Bulls is no less of a crowd. Returning starters Drew Gooden, Joakim Noah, Tyrus Thomas, Andres Nocioni, and superstar Luol Deng give the Bulls tons of options down low and in the mid-range.

Aaron Gray also figures to get in the mix, along with Demetris Nichols and Cedric Simmons, both undrafted free agents from previous years.

Projected Starting Five

PG— Derrick Rose, 6'3"

SG—Kirk Hinrich, 6'3"

SF—Luol Deng, 6'9"

PF—Drew Gooden, 6'10"

C—Joakim Noah, 6'11"

The Bulls' starting five doesn't figure to take away minutes from very many players on the bench, as the Bulls boast arguably the best pine-riders in the NBA. 

Hinrich is making the switch to shooting guard after many argued over his ability to spread the ball around and get others involved. He has been accused of taking too many errant three-pointers and making bad decisions in the clutch.

Prediction

58-24, 2nd Place, Central Division

Despite the fact that I believe the Bulls will win a lot of games, I think the Cavs are the team to beat during the regular season. In postseason play, I think the Bulls have just as good of a shot to make a Finals run as they did at the start of the 2007 season.

The only thing that may hold them back is the development of new head coach Vinny Del Negro. If he can coach these players to a great regular season record, look for them to do damage in the postseason.