Which Shooting Guard Do the Bulls Pair with Derrick Rose in Crunch Time?

Since the beginning of the season, the glaring weakness on the Bulls has been the starting shooting guard position. Although starter Keith Bogans has picked his game up since then, there is no clear best shooting guard on the Bulls out of Bogans, Ronnie Brewer and Kyle Korver.

This is not necessarily a bad thing in the long run. If one of the three goes out with an injury, another can easily step into the void. In fact, the Bulls' depth and ability to match up with any game plan has been a prime contributor to their success. 

However the player who starts the game is not nearly as important as the one who finishes the game. Without a clear No. 1, that position can be left up to debate. So looking at the Bulls' deep shooting guard rotation, who should be there to close out the game?

Keith Bogans

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WASHINGTON, DC - FEBRUARY 28: Keith Bogans #6 of the Chicago Bulls pulls in a rebound in front of Nick Young #1 of the Washington Wizards at the Verizon Center in Washington on February 28, 2011 in Washington, DC. NOTE TO USER: User expressly acknowledge

Pros: Despite popular belief by Bulls' fans, Keith Bogans is a very solid defender. As well, you can count on him to make the right decision and generally not mess up. Bogans is the kind of player that you play just for the purpose of not messing anything up. 

Cons: He just doesn't do anything special. You can count on him to not do anything bad, but what does he do that's good? That kind of player is fantastic for just eating up minutes but we don't want to just eat up minutes. The end of games are for putting it all on the line. The only exception would be if we're up by a lot, but then it's not really crunch time. 

Ronnie Brewer

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CHICAGO, IL - MARCH 11: Ronnie Brewer #11 of the Chicago Bulls puts up a shot past Kirk Hinrich #6 of the Atlanta Hawks at the United Center on March 11, 2011 in Chicago, Illinois. The Bulls defeated the Hawks 94-76. NOTE TO USER: User expressly acknowled

Pros: Brewer is a fantastic disruptive defender. This means that he goes and frustrates whoever he's guarding by forcing turnovers and playing physical. 

Cons: Brewer has a decent midrange game but at the end of games it's the Derrick Rose show. Every player should be able to make Rose succeed, and Brewer is not terribly effective at it because of his range. 

Kyle Korver

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CHICAGO, IL - MARCH 11: Kyle Korver #26 of the Chicago Bulls shoots a three-point shot against the Atlanta Hawks at the United Center on March 11, 2011 in Chicago, Illinois. The Bulls defeated the Hawks 94-76. NOTE TO USER: User expressly acknowledges and

Pros: Korver can flat out shoot. He spaces the floor for Rose and has shown the ability to hit big shots.  

Cons: Korver's defense leaves much to be desired. He tries hard but he just doesn't have the necessary quickness to be able to shut down shooting guards in this league.  

Conclusions

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PHOENIX - NOVEMBER 24: Derrick Rose #1 of the Chicago Bulls high fives teammate Kyle Korver #26 after scoring against the Phoenix Suns during the NBA game at US Airways Center on November 24, 2010 in Phoenix, Arizona. The Bulls defeated the Suns 123-115

You have to go with Kyle Korver on this one.

At the end of games, it's all about Derrick Rose. You're not trying to lock down the opposing scorer because Derrick Rose can answer. What you're really looking for is someone who can space the floor well for Rose or be a bailout option just in case, and Kyle Korver fits that role perfectly. Sure, he's not Bruce Bowen in his prime on defense, but he's good enough to not be a mismatch at least. 

Korver should be the player in the game at the end, and Thibodeau has been making the right move by playing him in that spot.