Who you dibbing on for next summer yo? lol

Watching the youngin's play last night and Dunn 'might' be something. Lauri gonna be good. I was skeptical of the pick but bol got mojo and a lil chip on his shoulder. And he's a lil stronger than I expected.

Denzel finally learning how to be a pro. Grant and Holiday are stop gaps but I can see value in Holiday as a back up.

LaVine will be back before the end of Dec.

Currently worst record in the league so if this keeps up, #1 is a real possibility.

Who fits best here?

-Bagley III: Boy been double-double killin' at Duke (ugh, we KNOW if we draft this dude, we gotta deal with Basa again lol)
-Ayton: That size and skillset is hard to dismiss. Motor and D are a work in progress though.
-Doncic: Killin' the Euro's. Probably NBA ready. Aggressive too.
-Porter Jr: Back issue is scary but 6'10" will SF skills...not sure if we can pass that up. Especially if he looks good in pre-draft workouts (that is, if he goes pro next summer).

^^^One of these dudes will likely be a Bull next year.

What up Bulls nation?

I have not watched one single bulls game this year.

And I suspect neither has Reinsdorf

>And I suspect neither has Reinsdorf

True. That's why I think if we do get #1, Doncic is the pick regardless. It's better business.

They need to slow this down until late in the season when it won't matter. lol

>They need to slow this down until late in the season when it
>won't matter. lol


This^^^^^

Assuming Lavine rounds into form, we have three young building blocks from the Jimmy trade. Add a top three pick and our rebuild could be a 2-3 year thing rather than a 4-6 year playoff drought situation.

Also, I want to a see a Dunn/Lavine/Nwaba/Lauri lineup. Nwaba could be core adjacent moving forward.

Should have just kept the local region guy while you go thru rebuild

13.9 ppg, 7.0 ppg, 4.7 apg, 2.1 spg, .494 fg%, .423 3p%

garpax actually bought low on a guy for once? le gasp.

Valentine has been helpful too. I was hoping they'd all develop this year but I dunno if I can stomach 6 game win steaks this early in the year. I need about 45 losses before they get competitive lol.

AND LaVine will be back soon. Somebody needs to be traded for a draft pick.

And the FO apparently has a good eye for young talent, they just suck at strategy. Like, they've not been good a planning long term for this team.

...and select Bagley. Especially when we have so few guys that can leap and run like he does.

But what Doncic's been doing overseas has been amazing.

Part of me thinks they won't want to pair Dunn and Doncic together.

Watching Dunn get to the paint has been fun.
Not sure I want to give Hoiberg the credit for helping his FG% yet (I will eventually, I"m stubborn).
I need Mirotic to play like this for a couple months before I get excited.
But I wlll say I'm laughing at both him and Portis balling together.

only the bulls.

Part of me is like, if we keep this up, it'll be Porter Jr at #4 or 5 lol. I like Ayton, Bagley and Doncic.

Ayton gives us some size to combat the Embiids, Goberts, KATs and Brows of the league. He has a modern skillset, an NBA build, will rebound. He's gonna need some work defensively and with a little more motor though.

Bagley can't shoot, well, yet. I'd be concerned he's going to be a 6'10" version of Manimal. But he would fit well, board hound, athletic, great finisher, smart, and has good mechanics for his J. Can't go wrong picking him.

Doncic is who I think the bulls would take with #1. Him + Markrakanen = $$$$$$$$$ for the owner/FO so he'd be the choice IMO. Wouldn't be a bad choice per say. Dude is a baller. He's a tad slow for a G in the NBA though. Everything else is legit from what I've seen.

Dude is a baller.
>He's a tad slow for a G in the NBA though. Everything else is
>legit from what I've seen.

Not very athletic but a great playmaker.
I'm playing devil's advocate right now.
But you're right, Doncic, Markkenen & LaVine? They'd love that.
And I think Dunn and Doncic could play together.
What is Doncic? 6'7?

then i read this yesterday:
https://www.theringer.com/nba/2017/12/18/16790032/marvin-bagley-2018-nba-draft-position

was meaning to ask ba / longo about their thoughts, as i don't follow college ball.

If he was a better defender, his lack of a mid range shot wouldn't look like such a problem.

I combat that to say, what is Robin Lopez doing that Bagley couldn't do?
And Bagley is more agile and faster.

This is where Box Score Bobbying hurts. There's some missing context-- for instance, he's shooting 70% from the FT line over the last nine games, showing some serious improvement as the season goes on. They say he's good from the mid-post, but frankly, he's done well on possessions starting at the perimeter as well. He occasionally settles for the open 3 when it's given to him, but if a big guy forces him out close to the perimeter, he's definitely fast enough and adept enough with the handles to blow by guys his own height. He mentions the 7 foot wingspan, but frankly, a 50 inch vertical more than makes up for that. Yes, he's not an elite shot blocker at this moment on the block in half-court sets, but he's busted out some tremendous blocks in transition chasing down opponents-- how many men his size can do that?

There's some straight-up factual inaccuracy, like how he says Marques Bolden is a back-to-the-basket threat today, or how he says Duke has played a lot of zone (when, in fact, I've been SCREAMING for Duke to play MORE zone-- they've only played it for roughly 4 total halves of the season so far at most) or that they've done it to limit the bigs' responsibility (it has more to do with the trouble we've had stopping dribble penetration/the possible matchup issues we create with it due to our length). They've mostly played man-to-man, and quite frankly, though Carter and Bolden are much better shot blockers, they also struggle far more in that format.

Yes, the 3 ball is a work in progress, but he hasn't been shy, and he's averaging about 1 per game-- just enough to keep defenses honest with the head fake. He's not a 5 unless you're playing super small ball, in which case you're likely emphasizing pressure more than traditional halfcourt D, in which case Bagley's the perfect guy for that. He's not a true stretch 4 in that he doesn't look to the 3 first, but if he can show by season's end 70% FT shooting and 35-36% from 3, that should be enough to keep defenses honest, and he's so much faster/skilled/athletic than the other guys his size that he shouldn't be the type of guy you plop in a corner and let chuck 3s anyhow. He's got an absurd motor, obscene bounce (including a ridiculous 2nd jump), his rebounding on *both* ends is elite, his defense is strong and versatile, and he's the rare big man #1 pick contender that I've *never* seen take plays off. Dude is an animal.

(It also goes without saying that everyone's assessment before conference play is destined to be at least partially dumb, including mine-- everyone would've thought Jayson Tatum couldn't shoot worth a shit until January. So much changes for these young guys in a couple months, and I feel like all of these "Bagley Shouldn't Be #1" pieces I've been reading are... strange, because I don't see those pieces for Doncic/Ayton/Porter when I could make plenty of arguments against-- well, at least the latter two, as I haven't seen Doncic.)

not a college hoops guy but i think i'ma start watching some of these guys soon.

i'm actually starting to worry a bit that this team is actually good.

fuck. they need that pick tho.

bit of a tough stretch coming up (cavs and Cs this weekend, next 8 all against teams currently in playoff position)

maybe they come back to earth? pretty please?

bron and love made difficult contested shots down the stretch. but that's why they get paid 20 mil +. our young ass inexperienced bulls fought hard till the last second.

we don't suck. not a bottom 5 team. we're gonna have to figure out a way to deal with this fact.

>bron and love made difficult contested shots down the
>stretch. but that's why they get paid 20 mil +. our young ass
>inexperienced bulls fought hard till the last second.
>
>we don't suck. not a bottom 5 team. we're gonna have to figure
>out a way to deal with this fact.

My fear.....We need that pick....

Silver lining? Next year w/ the new lottery rules, we could still be in contention for a top pick.

no.

Look, watching Dunn hit mid-range jumpers in the 4Q to seal games has a brotha looking at this team kinda...side eye.

like i said, bro: be eeeeeeeeasy

the road to a top 5 pick is still very much intact

I haven't watched a game yet but I keep tabs on results. Glad to see them competing and I am happy when they win a game and pretty content to see them keep things close even when they lose now.

I do think they need to stick to the rebuild plan and make trades based on long term plans vs this years results.

I am hoping they find some key players and build chemistry with them this year then compliment in the draft. They may have an okay foundation to build on.

btwn showing competitiveness and keeping their lottery odds favorable.

no need to go full tank. there's value in winning. you don't want guys just losing night in and out. young players internalize that stuff, they get used to losing and it plays on their confidence and self-esteem. so it's good to see them win some games and show some promise. they look to have a handful of keepers (dunn, lauri, nwaba, portis, valentine, lavine)

i still think they move mirotic after he becomes trade-eligible on 1/15 and that they finish with top 5 lottery odds. meanwhile, credit (begrudging as it may be) has to go to garpax. for now it looks like both the hoiberg hire and the butler trade may turn out to be good moves.

http://i.giphy.com/1049ukAOov8bni.gif

>for now it looks like both the hoiberg hire
may turn out to be good moves.

60 made 3s in the last 4 games (44.1%)

markkanen: fastest in nba history to 100 made 3s.

amazing what a guy can do when he has personnel that fit his system!

>amazing what a guy can do when he has personnel that fit his
>system!

I said that when they hired him and after that dumb 2016 offseason. Like WHY would you bring in dudes that don't fit what hoi does?!?!?

We look good now though. Hopefully we can start this way next season.

Dunn, Krakkanen and LaVine should all be better next year. Denzel, Portis (if he's still around), Mwaba and Holiday should be decent supporting cast members. A significant FA or draft pick might put us solidly in contention for a playoff spot.

great come back game against Dallas.

on a 20 min limit and no b2b through the allstar break.

Also, Niko supposedly still wants to be traded, hasn't played all week due to 'illness' and can officially be traded as of Monday (1/15).

Wonder what type of return they'll get on him. I'd be good with a late 1st or early second rounder and maybe a young prospect.

cleveland gave up 1sts for korver and for frye, as did houston for lou willz. niko's prolly better than all of those guys.

i'm hearing burks might be the return if he goes to utah.

i wouldn't mind moving him to portland for vonleh. i still think dude has some upside in the right situation.

>Also, Niko supposedly still wants to be traded, hasn't played
>all week due to 'illness' and can officially be traded as of
>Monday (1/15).
>
>Wonder what type of return they'll get on him. I'd be good
>with a late 1st or early second rounder and maybe a young
>prospect.

Niko is 26 and an absolute perfect fit at PF in today's game. Dude is valuable.

https://www.theringer.com/nba/2018/1/12/16880892/nba-kris-dunn-chicago-bulls

Dunn, Dunn, Dunn, Dunn: Is that Kris Dunn’s Music?
The Bulls are giving their new point guard every opportunity to be The Guy. Is he a part of their future, or just a placeholder for a top pick in this year’s draft?
By Jonathan Tjarks Jan 12, 2018, 5:55am EST

Kris Dunn is living proof of the power of context. After a horrible rookie season in Minnesota, the no. 5 pick in the 2016 draft looks like a completely different player in Chicago. He is averaging 13.7 points, 6.3 assists, 4.6 rebounds, and 2.0 steals a game on 43.4 percent shooting, while the Bulls, who are supposed to be tanking, have gone 11-7 over the past month. Dunn’s averages have skyrocketed, but that was inevitable given his new role as a featured player. Dunn hasn’t changed that much. Everything around him has.

Point guards are like quarterbacks: Developing them requires a huge commitment from their team, and they need opportunities with the ball in their hands. There’s only so much they can learn from practicing, watching from the sideline, or spotting up off the ball. The problem is that giving a young point guard those opportunities is a sure way to lose games. Learning to run an NBA offense is incredibly difficult. The bottom-three teams in the league in offensive rating this season all feature a first- or second-year point guard: the Lakers (Lonzo Ball), Bulls (Dunn), and Kings (De’Aaron Fox).

Dunn never had a chance in Minnesota. The franchise has the longest current playoff drought in the NBA, and it had run out of patience by the time it drafted him. The Wolves were changing gears, from building a young core to trying to win, and hired Tom Thibodeau to accelerate the rebuilding process. There was no time for Dunn to play through his mistakes, or much of an opportunity for him to show what he could do. Instead of directing the offense, he spotted up off Karl-Anthony Towns, Andrew Wiggins, and Zach LaVine.

“No one wants to be traded, but I understood I was going to be in a better situation with younger guys, being able to develop my game,” Dunn told me before a game in Dallas last week. “I was angry, but at the same time I looked at it as a restart.”

Things are different in Chicago. Trading Jimmy Butler for Dunn, LaVine, and the rights to Lauri Markkanen was the first step in the Bulls’ rebuilding project. Their only goal this season was to accumulate ping-pong balls. They had nothing to lose by empowering Dunn. With most of their team from last season gone, and LaVine out for the first few months to recover from an ACL tear, there was no one for Dunn to defer to. The Bulls became his team by default. Just look at how much more often he touches the ball than last season:

Kris Dunn
Touches Per Game | Average Time of Possession (seconds)
34.6 | 2.7
75.7 | 5.9

“When you have an organization that believes in you, it makes everything a lot easier,” Dunn said. “I’m 10 times more comfortable than last year. I have an understanding of my role, learning how to be a leader for the team and just trying to bring it every day. I have to thank the organization for that.”

Everything went according to plan for a while. Dunn dominated the ball, and there was little talent around him. The Bulls were predictably awful. Then, a month ago, Nikola Mirotic returned from a broken face, an injury he suffered at the hands of his teammate Bobby Portis. All of a sudden, the formerly feuding big men started clicking, and Chicago’s second unit began destroying teams. LaVine will make his season debut against the Pistons on Sunday, and the Bulls could actually be a respectable team if he returns at full strength.

Chicago is winning almost in spite of itself. It may still end up moving Mirotic, who has reportedly not taken back the trade demand he made after his fight with Portis. What direction the Bulls go from here is still unclear. The goal is still a high lottery pick in this year’s draft, and who they take will have a huge impact on Dunn’s development. Will they commit to him long term and draft a player who doesn’t take the ball out of his hands? Or will they take the best player available, even if it means minimizing Dunn in the process?

A lot of Chicago’s decisions will depend on how it evaluates Dunn. The Bulls, almost by accident, were designed to showcase their new point guard. He starts next to three knockdown shooters (Justin Holiday, Denzel Valentine, and Markkanen) who space the floor and move the ball, and a veteran center (Robin Lopez) who does the dirty work inside. Dunn plays at a faster pace this season, and he doesn’t have to make sure anyone is getting their touches. He is playing free. He reads and reacts to the situation in front of him without having to worry about coming out of the game if he misses a few shots.

“I had a really good talk with Kris before the game ,” Bulls coach Fred Hoiberg said. “I brought him in my office and said, ‘Listen, I’m going to start giving you some added responsibility. You’re becoming a guy that as you go, we go. And I’m going to let you go and control the offense a little bit.’ So he’s not looking over his shoulder at me for play calls all the time, and he starts recognizing who to get the ball to.”

Dunn has improved significantly from last season, but that’s a low bar to clear. He’s still an inefficient player who makes a lot of bad decisions with the ball. He has the third-lowest true-shooting percentage (48.4) and second-highest turnover percentage (17.9) among the top-45 players in the NBA in usage rate this season. He’s not driving the Bulls’ recent success: Their offensive rating is 1.6 points better when he’s off the floor then when he’s on it, and over their past 15 games, they have a net rating of minus-6.0 with Dunn and a plus-3.3 without him.

Dunn’s biggest selling points are his physical tools and his desire to improve. At 23 years old, he already has an NBA-ready body, and he’s mature for his age. A difficult childhood, during which he was raised by a single mother who was incarcerated, forcing Dunn to live on his own with his brother for months before they were reunited with his father, has helped him put his struggles in the NBA in perspective. He keeps an even keel, and he has become a leader in the locker room. His teammates know how much work he puts in—for example, how he watches every game he plays on film twice after it happens.

Holiday said Dunn’s ability to bounce back from a rough game is “impressive if I didn’t know who he was. If you know Kris Dunn, that’s what you expect from him. He’s going to come with it. He bounces back, and that’s what we expect him to do.”

Dunn is physically able to handle the rigors of the NBA. He has elite size (6-foot-4 and 210 pounds with a 6-foot-9 wingspan) and speed for a point guard, which is partly why his defense is ahead of his offense at this stage of his career. He focused on that side of the ball as a rookie, but he’s been able to maintain his defensive intensity this season even though he has a much bigger role in the offense. According to the tracking numbers at Synergy Sports, Dunn is in the 73rd percentile of players leaguewide when defending the ball handler in the pick-and-roll, and in the 64th percentile when defending isolations.

Like many hyperathletic guards, Dunn didn’t need a polished jumper until he got to the NBA. He could get into the paint and dominate the area at the front of the rim whenever he wanted at lower levels of the game. That caught up to him in Minnesota, where he couldn’t buy a jumper to save his life. He has worked diligently in Chicago on improving his mechanics with Hoiberg, a shooting specialist during his decade as an NBA player. Still, Dunn is a work in progress. He is shooting 33.7 percent from 3 on 2.5 attempts a game this season, and 69.6 percent from the free throw line on 1.9 attempts a game—below-average numbers for an NBA point guard.

“I’m working on my whole formula. My body position. Looking at the back of the rim. When I catch the ball, I like to shoot it from my chest. I’m trying to keep the ball away from there,” Dunn said. “Shooting is going to come in time. There’s plenty of years left for me to grow and develop into that.”

Dunn’s inconsistent jumper holds him back when he’s running the pick-and-roll, the staple of the Bulls offense. He handles the ball in those plays on 65.3 percent of his offensive possessions, but he’s in only the 43rd percentile of players when scoring out of it. Opposing defenders sag off him and dare him to shoot, so there aren’t many driving lanes for him to attack. He’s often driving into the teeth of the defense, and tries to create something out of nothing. As a result, Dunn has the third-highest turnover percentage in the pick-and-roll (18.1 percent) of the 20 players who have run it the most this season.

https://media.giphy.com/media/3oFzm08VpyxVNTlkWY/giphy.gif

“I’m an aggressive player on both ends,” Dunn said. “I like to make the home run plays sometimes.”

Not many guards are allowed to play as aggressively. The only high-usage players with higher turnover rates on the pick-and-roll are Russell Westbrook and James Harden. The difference is the payoff to their gambles is higher. Harden (65.5 percent) and Westbrook (61.8 percent) shoot a much higher percentage at the rim than Dunn (54.5 percent), and they get to the free throw line far more often. His free throw rate (.140) is more than three times lower than Harden’s (.497), and twice as low as Westbrook’s (.336). No one expects him to be as good as those two; they were All-Stars at the age he is now.

The question is whether Dunn can be effective if he’s not in a featured role. He doesn’t threaten defenses off the ball. He’s averaging only 3.0 3-point attempts per 36 minutes of playing time, which puts him 55th among the 60 guards who have started at least 20 games this season. If he’s not initiating the offense, the defense doesn’t have to guard him. The Bulls have worked around his poor shooting by building their offense around him. Dunn has to continue improving as a shooter because Chicago may not give him a similar opportunity to dominate the ball next season as much as he has this season.

The biggest story line for the Bulls over the second half of the season is how well Dunn can mesh with LaVine. The other Wolves veteran traded to Chicago will have a much larger role in the offense than either Holiday or Valentine, neither of whom has a usage rate above 18 this season. Chicago will run a lot of plays for LaVine, who was in the 63rd percentile of scorers out of the pick-and-roll last season. The Bulls are not just going to be the Kris Dunn Show anymore.

Still, the two former Minnesota guards could be an effective backcourt pairing. Dunn has the defensive chops to guard either backcourt position, so he could take the more difficult assignment on a nightly basis, allowing LaVine, an inconsistent defender at best, to hide off the ball. On the other end of the floor, LaVine is an elite 3-point shooter, so he can create room for Dunn to drive to the rim. However, if Dunn can’t keep the defense honest when LaVine has the ball, the Bulls may end up having to stagger their minutes and pick one to emphasize.

If Chicago can commit to both, it could draft an athletic big man to round out their core. The Bulls need a long-term replacement for Lopez, who doesn’t have the speed to protect Markkanen on defense, and isn’t much of a threat in the pick-and-roll. Lopez also doesn’t have the finishing ability to catch lobs at the rim, or the shooting ability to drag his man out to the 3-point line. There are a lot of centers projected to be available no matter where the Bulls wind up in the lottery, whether it’s Deandre Ayton, Marvin Bagley III, Mohamed Bamba, or less highly regarded prospects like Rtobert Williams or Jaren Jackson Jr.

The more difficult question is what happens if they have the opportunity to take a point forward like Luka Doncic, or a point guard like Trae Young or Collin Sexton. Adding another ball-dominant perimeter player with LaVine would force Dunn off the ball completely. At that point, Dunn would probably be better coming off the bench and anchoring the second unit. He may wind up in a defensive spark plug role similar to the one Marcus Smart has in Boston. Smart was a point guard in college, but he has never gotten the opportunity to run the Celtics offense. Those opportunities don’t come often in the NBA.

Dunn has 40 more games to make an impression on the Bulls. He can look like a future All-Star on nights when his shot is falling, such as when he went off for 32 points on 12-of-17 shooting and nine assists in a 127-124 win over Dallas last week. Other nights, he can look like he has no business being featured in an NBA offense, such as the 4-for-18 performance in a double-overtime win over New York on Wednesday. A young point guard in the NBA will have a lot of ups and downs. Dunn needs to show enough so that Chicago won’t want to get on that roller coaster again with another player.

no need to worry. i'm sure this will end well.

https://www.dallasvoice.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/08/Screen-shot-2012-08-14-at-11.20.05-PM-e1345005581307.png

But if we get Bagley...I already know. lol

I think we've gotten more sophisticated over the years so you'll at least be reasonable with the more reasonable of us (ain't a ton around anymore anyway).

You and Murph can have separate squabbles from us though.

I'd love all the Chicago kids to come home, shine and lead us to a title.

Duke and K wouldn't get no credit from me though hahaha

Principle man, principle.

>But if we get Bagley...I already know. lol
>
>I think we've gotten more sophisticated over the years so
>you'll at least be reasonable with the more reasonable of us
>(ain't a ton around anymore anyway).
>
>You and Murph can have separate squabbles from us though.


Nah...I'm good....And thanks for the low key side-eye....lol

I be like:

https://media.giphy.com/media/Lxpo4BqGh1sjK/giphy.gif

Niko trade might slow things down but this train don't look like it's stopping.

i still don't think they're going to play like this all year. there will be lulls. and probably lulz.

but another piece to this core would make me happy.

I wouldn't care which it was of the top 6 (obviously Young or Bagley cause for hard decisions at PG and PF but those are good problems to have).

I do love the development Hoi has been able to promote though.

to make the playoffs in the East, the bottom rung teams will need .500 or better records just to sniff the 7th and 8th slots. Baring major injuries for the other contending teams, it's going to be tough for the Bulls to get that kind of record. Pretty sad, because the Bulls have been playing teams tough as of late. If I'm not mistaken, they beat the Raptors recently.

8th seed in the east will prolly have 43 or 44 wins. bulls would have to play something like .700 ball the rest of the way.

that definitely ain't happening. they're not that good, they still got some major asswhoopins on deck.

>that definitely ain't happening. they're not that good, they
>still got some major asswhoopins on deck.


Good...keeping my fingers crossed....

When this team is on, it's hard not to ask... Ha.

But yeah, this current group isn't a playoff team.
I don't even think next year they'll make it.
But year 3? That could be something.

And I'll admit here (begrudgingly) that we're in a better spot than I expected.

or is it something in-between?

definitely not happy seeing them lose and by so much lately. feel a little better knowing it improves their draft odds but just a little.

summer, sure he will be directly in the shadow of Mike but it makes more sense than going West.

uppity nigger.

https://twitter.com/vgoodwill/status/958400967761940487?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw&ref_url=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.blogabull.com%2F2018%2F1%2F29%2F16946402%2Frumor-chicago-bulls-interested-in-rodney-hood

"Hearing Nikola Mirotic will be dealt to New Orleans Pelicans for Omer Asik and first round draft pick, sources tell @NBCSChicago"

But yeah, happy we got a 1st.

FROM BILL SIMMONS: Update: According to Spotrac, Asik is on the books for $11.3m in 2018 with a $3m buyout in 2019... so the Bulls are paying $14.3m in future money for the mid-teens 1st rounder not $23m. That still seems STEEP.

https://twitter.com/wojespn/status/958409779847811072

moving the movement, my nigga. we need these L's!

I swear he's the engine.

https://www.blogabull.com/2018/2/20/17033978/bulls-announce-theyre-benching-robin-lopez-and-justin-holiday-immediately

I've been team GarPax for the last 8 months.

I was a 'lil' weary of the Lauri pick but that's worked wonders. They can't do much wrong with me right now.

Get that top 5 pick and let's roll the ball out next year with a 4 man core that we can fully develop together.

-Dunn: defensive minded, dime dropping, hard playing, surprisingly good rebounding, potential triple doubler, steadily developing on offense.
-LaVine: Uber athletic wing with a decent 3, fast off the dribble, still explosive after the ACL surgery, scoring machine, good foundation for defensive instincts.
-Markrakannen: Tall, long, has decent defensive instincts, rangy with the 3, decent post game, mold of the modern stretch 4.
-#4...there are some awesome options.

And considering we need a SF or a C, we are in a GREAT spot this draft. Porter Jr, Doncic, Ayton, Bamba, Jackson Jr. all make a ton of sense for us. Bagley and Young, not so much but push comes to shove we could make it work.

My order of preference:
1)Ayton - Size and 3pt range
2)Porter Jr - Size at the SF position, 3pt range, fluid game
3)Doncic - Perfect for Hoiball...even if he is a 'lil' slow
4)Bamba - To me, he has a GREAT ceiling if he works hard and continues to develop. Seems like he wants to be great.
5) Bagley/Jackson Jr/Young - of the 3 JJ probably fits a little better but he's not as talented as the other two. I'd definitely go talent over fit too. Hoi would just have to make it work.

Let's get this pick!

AND we have NO's pick so we have some prospect options there too...oh yeah. Next season's gonna be fun.

im just hoping they dont buy them out as there is no need for them too. dont want to see the cavs pick up rolo on the cheap.

Dunn/Zach/Nwaba/Lauri is the most well-rounded four we can put on the floor together IMO. But Felicio is horrible and will be driving this tank.

I liked that our young guys got burn and our trade assets from the Jimmy deal have been great. I hated that we had too much success so early and then a blip at the end of the season (Lost 7 straight then won 3 in a row...we lose out the season and we had a stronger shot at a top 3-5 pick).

This team, fully healthy from go, probably could have won 38-43 games...which puts us on the cusp of a playoff spot. I like that we have good assets and might be a piece or two away from making serious noise. Right now, we're looking at #6 or #7 pick if things stay standard. Lose to the pistons tonight and hope that Houston rests it's key players for the 'offs since they've locked up the #1 seed and the Kings get the W. Kings swept us this year so they get the tie breaker and we'd have the 6th worse record based on that, setting us up for a top 6 pick. Would suck to get leapfrogged and would be awesome to land top 3 being so close.

At worst, we get #10. So top 10 prospects?

1) DeAndre Ayton - C
2) Luka Doncic - GF
3) Jaren Jackson Jr - FC
4) Mohamed Bamba - C
5) Marvin Bagley - PF
6) Michael Porter Jr - SF
7) Wendell Carter Jr - FC
8) Trae Young - PG
9) Mikal Bridges - SF
10)Miles Bridges - SF
11)Kevin Knox - SF
13)Collin Sexton - PG
14)Robert Williams - FC
15)Shai Gilgeous-Alexander - PG

I think our biggest needs are SF and C. Defense is something we need to improve as well. We were 24th in scoring and 27th in defense (ppg). Based on these needs, where we will land if everything goes according to record, Wendell Carter Jr is probably the best pick for us. Effective on O, good rebounder, decent/good defender (2.1 bpg in college). I would not be mad at this.

I've even come around on Bagley as an option. He'd be a small ball C though. But my order of preference is this:

1) Ayton - Could be a transformative piece. I'm not 100% sold on Ayton but the possibility is too good to pass on.
2) Bagley - As a small ball C he's perfect. Even showed some shooting range as the season went on but that will be a work in progress. Has some defensive instincts I like as well.
3) Doncic - I still think he's a bit slow for his position but has some dog in him, mature offensive game as well. Could slot nicely between LaVine and Markrakannen
4) Porter Jr - Tons of upside for a 6'10" SF with his skillset. Back a concern given his injury this yr but I'm sure some of that will be vetted during predraft.
5) Carter Jr - Probably the most obvious choice at #6 as stated above for reasons stated above.
6) Young - the PG issue (him vs Dunn, do we have both, etc). His shooting will be fantastic in the L. He'll have other weapons around him to make him dangerous and our system is designed for a guy like him to shine. He'd need to develop leaps and bounds defensively though.
7) Jackson Jr - He kinda flamed out at seasons end. I'd still be thrilled to have him but I'm not AS excited about him as I was.

Get one of these guys and a few vets to deepen the bench/add to the guys we have, LaVine can workout, Lauri and Dunn can work to improve and I think we'd make a nice playoff run next yr.

How y'all feeling about the offseason?

>How y'all feeling about the offseason?

Ha. I've always had the feeling that our FO's best skill in scouting is luck. I felt good about this season back in November because I thought we'd be bad enough to land (at least) a top 3 pick, which would make scouting easier. But now that it's in the 7-10 range, *shrug*. Full disclosure, I have an agenda towards Paxson and Forman so, take my comments with a grain of salt.

- I liked the idea of drafting Trae Young (cause I think he will be available), but I don't think Dunn, and shoot LaVine for that matter would work without the ball in their hands. They'd all need it. On another note, I'd like to see Dunn, Lavine and Markkannen get more time on the court together. I refuse to believe Fred can't get them playing better together. The sample size was just so small.

- I'd really like to see us get a solid 3D guy. If Denzel is your solution at the 3 next year, that's a problem.

- Any chance the Bulls package #8 & #21 for something higher?

- I really hope the Bulls sign David Nwaba.

i was wondering this myself. it seems trading lower 1st round pics in the nba arent as valuable as in the nfl. in the nfl theres no question you could get a top 5 pick by trading those two.

i would think if a team in the top 5 is up to pick and the best player available doesnt meet a need they have but they feel they can meet their need at 8 they may do it.

i have a feeling the bulls are going to blow up what they have again. i dont know why, but i expect them to move a lot of their players and come back with almost a new roster next year.

>i have a feeling the bulls are going to blow up what they have
>again. i dont know why, but i expect them to move a lot of
>their players and come back with almost a new roster next
>year.

They're in a tough spot cause they didn't get a good look at Lavine over a full season.
But now they gotta pay him so...*shrug*.

>Ha. I've always had the feeling that our FO's best skill in
>scouting is luck. I felt good about this season back in
>November because I thought we'd be bad enough to land (at
>least) a top 3 pick, which would make scouting easier. But
>now that it's in the 7-10 range, *shrug*. Full disclosure, I
>have an agenda towards Paxson and Forman so, take my comments
>with a grain of salt.

They've actually done semi-well lately. It was those early picks (Tyrus friggin' Thomas) that stained their rep. I personally think there's only a few ways for them to mess up a top 10 pick this yr. There's a lot of good options.

>- I liked the idea of drafting Trae Young (cause I think he
>will be available), but I don't think Dunn, and shoot LaVine
>for that matter would work without the ball in their hands.
>They'd all need it. On another note, I'd like to see Dunn,
>Lavine and Markkannen get more time on the court together. I
>refuse to believe Fred can't get them playing better together.
> The sample size was just so small.

Trae would be awesome but yeah, some stuff would need to change a little. I do think Trae could be great off the ball/splitting handling duties with Dunn. The bulls kinda ball handle by committee sometimes anyway. Setting Trae up for open looks would be dangerous for the league. And I agree, next season will already be better simply due to continuity/a full training camp with everyone healthy.

>- I'd really like to see us get a solid 3D guy. If Denzel is
>your solution at the 3 next year, that's a problem.

Denzel actually developed this year and I love him as a 6th man/bench relief. He's too small to play the 3. That's why I said our immediate needs are SF and C. I think the Bulls, knowing our FO and their recent history, probably has their draft board like this:

1) Ayton - Big, no brainer
2) Doncic - Euro SF is the PERFECT draft pick for them, would be #1 if Ayton wasn't 7 feet tall
3) Bagley - Big who can help and do almost everything well.
4) Porter jr - Light bright, 6'10", SF, can shoot, good character...type of guy they like
5) Carter jr - because of everything I listed earlier AND he went to Duke so...Coach K
6) Bamba/Young - Defensive big and Offensive PG

>- Any chance the Bulls package #8 & #21 for something higher?

This would be interesting. To move up would be cool but we don't know where our pick will land. Right now, our record says #7 or #6 depending on what happens tonight. and the Pels pick might be a lil higher too (or lower). But #6 or better plus the Pels pick could get us a slot or two depending on how it goes. I expect them to explore it.

>- I really hope the Bulls sign David Nwaba.

To a reasonable deal, I'm with it. Him and Denzel off the bench really helps. Low key, we have a young promising bench (Vonleh, Denzel, Nwaba, Portis, Holiday and one of Grant/Payne).

>They've actually done semi-well lately. It was those early
>picks (Tyrus friggin' Thomas) that stained their rep. I
>personally think there's only a few ways for them to mess up a
>top 10 pick this yr. There's a lot of good options.

It was a lot more than Tyrus Thomas that stained their rep.
I'm still mad at the Gibson/McDermott for Cam Payne deal.
Every year they chase after a guy "we've always wanted."
But whatever...just like Chicago politics, people are in office until they don't want it anymore.

Low key, we have a young promising bench
>(Vonleh, Denzel, Nwaba, Portis, Holiday and one of
>Grant/Payne).

Nwaba
Portis
Holiday

I see potential in them and roll with. Grant and Payne? Naw man.

>It was a lot more than Tyrus Thomas that stained their rep.
>I'm still mad at the Gibson/McDermott for Cam Payne deal.
>Every year they chase after a guy "we've always wanted."
>But whatever...just like Chicago politics, people are in
>office until they don't want it anymore.

True but I think Tyrus was where it started.

>Nwaba
>Portis
>Holiday
>
>I see potential in them and roll with. Grant and Payne? Naw
>man.

Both had their moments and Payne played pretty decent down the stretch. 3rd string PG's? Yeah, but serviceable.

https://www.blogabull.com/2018/6/22/17493176/bulls-continue-preach-patience-with-process-nba-draft

"I’m not confident that the Bulls have multiple stars already in place, but the sentiment here is a good one. The Bulls’ rebuild was never going to be done overnight, and what happened Thursday is evidence of a team willing to be patient during this process as they build an asset base. While more could’ve been done last night, the Bulls still had a solid draft that has them pointing in the right direction. At some point, though, the Bulls will have to be aggressive and make some big moves."

But he made a good point about Paxson. Last offseason, he stressed that the Bulls didn't want to be bad for long, hinting that they were looking to accelerate the rebuild. Now he's changed his tune and he's talking patience and how the Bulls aren't ready yet.