CHICAGO STARTS HOT, AIMS TOWARDS CONTENDING BY ADDING GASOL.
"No need to fight downlow anymore boys: you're together now"
CHICAGO, IL:
Derrick Rose and the Chicago Bulls started the season the way every fan wanted them to: hot!
Undefeated after three contests, the Bulls lead Central Division. It's a small lead, that's true, but every Chicagoan dreamed about D-Rose coming back in great shape and leading the Bulls all the way to the top spot in the East again: so far, he has done exactly that, doing whatever they need and carrying the load offensively.
But there's more than Rose to explain Chicago's 3-0 start.
While big-man Joakim Noah does not have the flashy scoring numbers that Rose possesses, he has been their most efficient player so far. Noah isn't only contributing offensively (posting 14,3 PPG on 55% shooting and jaw-dropping 92% on FTs), but he's leading the Bulls defensively, posting a perfect Stop% on drives, forcing 2.3 TOs per contest, and allowing an elite 0.6 points per shot faced. For all that, he's been the leader of the Bulls efficiency ranking so far, with 23 points.
"Taj-Noah duo has been working so well for the Bulls as the season goes underway"
Then comes his low-post partner, Taj Gibson. Taj was trusted the starting role in place of Carlos Boozer, who was being aggressively shopped out of Chicago, and did very good use of increased minutes. Bringing every single night a combination of scoring (16.7 PPG), rebounding (6.3) and rim protection (1.3), Taj has to be considered the 3rd best player on this Bulls hot start.
He'll see a decreased role now, that's for sure, but it will now be up to him and fellow ex-starter Kirk Hinrich to orchestrate the new Chicago Bulls bench mob.
All that because yesterday Chicago completed what experts labelled as "another step towards contention", shipping Carlos Boozer and two 1st round picks (14' CHI and top-10 protected '15 SAC) to bring a veteran with championship experience: Pau Gasol. They also acquired a future 2nd from the Lakers. Gasol is a 7'0 big man with unique playmaking skills and touch around the rim. Everybody knows how much he can contribute to a team, specially after he helped Kobe Bryant and the Lakers winning two Rings.
"He knows how does it taste, and wants to add few more to his collection"
He'll be paired with the best passing big man in the league, Joakim Noah, giving the Bulls a perfect fit inside the paint: Gasol is very offensive oriented with good rebounding and defense, while Noah is an elite defender that can contribute at the offensive glass and make "point-guard passes". Their games complement each other so well, and the possibility of pairing two big with playmaking skills in their skill set is unique in CSL, specially because the Small Ball with only one big man in the court became so popular.
Chicago's combination of Noah, Gasol and Gibson is going in the opposite direction of what the league is doing in this days. As they are not the best offensive team in a league full of offensive talent, and having only one reliable shot creator from the perimeter, they can't run a 3 guard lineup so often. So they are going to have two legit big mans every time in the court (with Marcus Camby seeing time as a rim protector 4th big man). Taj Gibson's defensive versatility will allow him to match up with stretch fours, while the Bulls will try to make every team pay inside for going small against them.
That trade also influenced the perimeter rotation. Kirk Hinrich lost his starting spot to Rudy Fernandez, who performed very well in his first two games as a Bull. Coach Thibs talked a little but more about Bulls offensive and defensive schemes and rotations after Gasol's trade:
"First of all, we want to keep playing great defense like we are now. We're going to be starting Rose, Rudy, Jimmy, Gasol and Noah, with Hinrich, Dunleavy and Gibson being the first guys off the bench at guard / wings and interior, respectively. That will allow us to have a great defensive balance and spacing the floor. Augustin will play too when Rose does not, so we can have a shot creator anytime on the floor, and when he plays, Marcus Camby will man the middle for us. As DJ is not the best defender, Camby's rim protection will help our team keeping drivers away while Noah takes a rest. That way, we're going to be good both at the O and, more importantly, the D.
So far it has worked perfectly for Chicago as their defense is 3rd in the league in oPPG and 2nd in oFG% (87.3 and .376%, both elite numbers). They haven't allowed a single team to score 100 and held Memphis O to only 79. And their offense, while not brilliant, is on the 13th spot in FG%, a respectable number. Also, they've been able to take care of the rock, turning the ball over only 10.7 times per game, and they are shooting 3s at over 40%.
But the last but most important factors that highlights how much they are buying into coach Thibs philosophies of "fundamental basketball" are the 48 rebounds and
22 assists per game, ranking 2nd and 3rd in the league, respectively. If you deny your opponent second chances and move the ball properly, you are in great shape to win the game, and that's what they have focused as of now.
The addition of Gasol to an already well-oiled machine may elevate Chicago all the way to Miami's and Indiana's level, with a real chance to win the East. They are hungry, motivated, and united for one only purpose: the ring.
The rest, including all the statistics here, are "Bull"shit.
2028
