Kris Dunn reminds me of Kirk Hinrich in his first year - a turnover machine. Hinrich got better at handling the ball and added occasional scoring punch. Much of his value was as an over-sized combo guard capable of defending the other teams best play-maker. This allowed Ben Gordon to excel as a shorter SG with low defensive skills. Then, once the Bulls drafted D. Rose, Hinrich moved to Shooting Guard allowing D. Rose to be a score-first PG with low defensive skills. Hinrich had a long, successful NBA career. Dunn has similar potential. Is it PG or Bust for Dunn? Or does he have combo guard potential? Also, is Z. Levine locked in at SG once he returns or is he skillful at PG or SF?
Mark Schweihs
Good to see Blakeney settling down a bit. At one point in the 4th, I saw him having a few words with Holiday, after which Holiday drove the baseline & scored. I hope the Bulls have control of his contract and he can’t be ‘stolen’, as I think he’ll eventually be a player we can use.
Art Alenik
Lets say OKC continues to stumble and after the all star break looking at an 8th seed. Would u shop PG to Cavs for Nets pick and say Tristan Thompson?
Mike Sutera
I watched the 1st half of the Bulls game vs. the L.A. Lakers. The 6'6" point guard they drafted out of UCLA looks like a keeper. A horrendous shooting game, but how about 13 rebounds and 5-6 assists? Certainly a reason why he went number 2 overall.. I like him a lot based on what I've seen out of his game thus far. What are your thoughts?
Tom Plonowski
I think even when Mirotic comes back Mark should still see around 30-32 mpg. I think the bulls have to play Mirotic because his value is zero on the trade market. Bobby has definitely increased his trade value. His defense leaves much to be desired. I think the bulls may have a solid rotational guard in Antonio Blakeney. I like Denzel Valentine at the SF position. I think when Lavine comes back I'd much prefer Holiday come off the bench. I believe denzel is much more versatile and brings more efficiency. He's like a second point guard. Lopez, Mark, Valentine, Lavine, Dunn starting with Portis, Mirotic, Holiday, Blakeney, Grant coming off the bench the bulls seem to have some surprise depth to them.
Rocky Rosado
Looking at the records so far this early season, there are several teams (Including the Bulls) that have the potential to lose enough games to have a shot at the # 1 Pick in the 2018 Draft. With the continued improvement of players like Valentine, Markennen, Dunn & Portis (Along with Levine returning soon) , Bulls may not be the worst team in the League. Then again, having a pick between 3-7 may work in their favor. Would be difficult to have to draft the best player available that may happen to play the same position as Markennen?
Randall Sanders
Assuming LeBron is no longer the best player in the world in the Eastern Conference circa 2020/21, which may be premature, do you foresee the Celtics as the team to beat, followed by Washington/Detroit? Is Philly in the conversation? I hope not, as I hate to see tanking rewarded.
And does Justin Holiday have any idea how big of a George Costanza Chucker he is right now?
Paulie Giuntoli
Just read your article about Lavine's progress with contact drills. I will be one of those fans worried for 2 reasons when he comes back: Will he get hurt again and will this give the Bulls too many wins considering draft position? I am still a huge D Rose fan so I hate thinking about that happening again with Lavine but I guess there's no point worrying about that. Regarding the wins, do you think adding Lavine by December instead of February/March gives the Bulls a few more wins, 5 or 6 more wins, or closer to 10 more wins with him playing? I know you think the wins are good for a team but I think they need to stay in the bottom 2 for the draft!
Jon Kueper
LaVine is still a guy coming back from an ACL. You hope for the best and watch the expectations. If this were a team with a bunch of guys that were playing for the conference finals, the turnover fest aspect would be pretty awful. But with this bunch for now I mind less. Right now, they're establishing an attitude and the other stuff is details for the time being. Hope they watch lots and lots of film on the plane. If Payne comes ready to play, he'll help in the half-court offense and might surprise on defense if he keeps low with his eyes up/ears open and uses his hands only at opportunity. Lefties are a tough check off the dribble, they're just weird to figure.
Pete Zievers
Any idea why nba teams switched this year to wearing colors/dark at Home and white away?
Guy Danilowitz
What's Lauri like? I like him a lot as a player, and I just saw him interviewed after the game yesterday in one of the Bulls videos. After watching him answer some of the softballs, Lauri came across as probably too intelligent for them and with little patience for the "how did it feel when you...?" type of questions.
Alejandro Yegros
Just read that Ben Gordon was arrested for the 3rd time in 5 months. I always liked Ben. He was a fierce competitor who overcame his small (for NBA) stature to become the go to scorer for a few Bulls playoffs teams. Some blasphemous fans even took to calling him Ben Jordan when he would hit big shots. While I suspected the Bulls were wise not to overpay him, I didn’t expect him to fade so quickly, basically unable to earn minutes on bad teams and out of the league in a few years. Also, contrary to what recent headlines might suggest, he always struck me as extremely professional off the court with a good head on his shoulders.
NBA 2k18 recently created “All Time” teams for each franchise. They have some glaring omissions on their “All Time Bulls” team, like Norm and Chet, but I might be so bold as to say that Ben deserves considerations for a spot on that team as well.
What’s your take on Ben’s career, his place in Bulls history, and who makes your “All Time Bulls” team?
Dan Slesnick
The Bulls top 10 All-time? Subject to change, of course.
1. Michael Jordan. No explanation.
2. Scottie Pippen. Not much explanation.
3. Derrick Rose. It’s a Sandy Koufax, Bill Walton pick. When he was great, few were ever better. League MVP, starting All-Star, playoff records as a rookie, 60-win season next to Keith Bogans.
4. Chet Walker. Hall of Famer who pretty much evenly split his career between the Bulls and 76ers. One of premier closers of his era who still has second highest scoring game to all Jordan’s top scoring games in team history.
5. Artis Gilmore. Another Basketball Hall of Famer. Probably more from his ABA days, but a regular All-Star in six Bulls seasons and one of most feared big men of his time.
6. Jerry Sloan. The original Mr. Bull. Not as distinguished with honors, but epitomizes the franchise as much as anyone with his hard playing style and unselfish team commitment.
7. Bob Love. One of the premier two-way players of his era, a top defender and perennial 20-plus scorer.
8. Horace Grant. Made an All-Star team and a few all-defensive teams. But it was his combination with Jordan and Pippen that symbolized those climbing and break through championship Bulls with defense, athleticism and panache.
9. Norm Van Lier. Yes, there were fewer teams then; so easier to make all-league teams. But he was one of the most ferocious guard defenders ever, a six-time all-defensive player in his Bulls years, multiple All-Star and a throwback to an era when it wasn’t quite that unusual to chase an opponent with a chair. And not to help him sit down.
10. Jimmy Butler. He didn’t stick around quite long enough to make all-time franchise lists, and it was mostly a three-year run. But he was dominant in that stretch being considered among the top two-way players in the game.
I won’t argue definitely over the last few spots. I can make cases for guys like Toni Kukoc, Luol Deng, Joakim Noah, Reggie Theus, Kirk Hinrich, Charles Oakley, Mickey Johnson, John Paxson for big shots and yes, Ben.