DeMar DeRozan Leads the NBA in MPG

[meekrab]

We're constantly playing close games, its hard to criticize the coach for playing his best players in the clutch moments.

The few times we've been up 8-10 points with 4 minutes left and Billy still had the starters in I've seen complaints about it.

People didn't like Thibs' minutes because both he & the Bulls were contending and should have been paced for a long PS.
Billy playing the Bulls like 82 is the entire season is perfectly reasonable.

Also, Thibs had an airtight defensive system drilled into everyone's heads and a very strong bench with Taj and Asik who were at times better than the starters.

Billy's got Andre Drummond and Onuralp Bitim.

[PurpleTrees]

Demar is going for 35 to 40 mil a season. I dont know where some of you guys are getting 25 mil from. Hes a max player and would be eligible for 4/180. I see him signing a 4/155 deal, giving the Bulls a 25 mil discount over the 4 year term. The Bulls will need to trade Zach for this to happen, or be satisfied with a Demar S/T.

If you guys dont believe me, i guess we'll see this summer.

Your post is not based in reality my friend. Nobody is paying Demar that kind of money at his age.

Sent from my SM-S918U using RealGM mobile app

Guess we'll see. The Bulls and DDR were FAR away from a deal the last time it was discussed. Far in dollars and years.

They most likely offered a 2/60-65 deal which Demars camp laughed at. For Demar to stay in Chicago, the Bulls are going to have to offer at least a 3 year 115 deal or more. Age wont be a negotiation point for the Bulls, he leads the entire NBA in MPG and is an iron man.

Hes going to win clutch player of the year and might make another all NBA team this year. He will get PAID.

[HearshotKDS]

Obviously not ideal but whats the alternative? Zach and Pwill out for the year, Lonzo was maimed in '22, we need the other SFs on the roster to play PF when we cant go Drummond/Vuc front court. Theres basically 9 NBA players on the team right now and even that might be generous to #8 and 9. If AKME werent going to be sellers at trade deadline they needed to do the team a favor and be buyers even if it was at the dollar store to avoid the minute crunch. God help us if AC goes down again.

[League Circles]

Demar is going for 35 to 40 mil a season. I dont know where some of you guys are getting 25 mil from. Hes a max player and would be eligible for 4/180. I see him signing a 4/155 deal, giving the Bulls a 25 mil discount over the 4 year term. The Bulls will need to trade Zach for this to happen, or be satisfied with a Demar S/T.

If you guys dont believe me, i guess we'll see this summer.

Your post is not based in reality my friend. Nobody is paying Demar that kind of money at his age.

Sent from my SM-S918U using RealGM mobile app

Guess we'll see. The Bulls and DDR were FAR away from a deal the last time it was discussed. Far in dollars and years.

They most likely offered a 2/60-65 deal which Demars camp laughed at. For Demar to stay in Chicago, the Bulls are going to have to offer at least a 3 year 115 deal or more. Age wont be a negotiation point for the Bulls, he leads the entire NBA in MPG and is an iron man.

Hes going to win clutch player of the year and might make another all NBA team this year. He will get PAID.

The problem with projecting Demar's value this way is that Demar is a ball dominant isolation scorer and always has been. Considering his age, most likely only contending teams would have strong interest, and they all already have better #1 options, so chemistry becomes a major concern. Nobody offered Demar anywhere near what you're suggesting 2.5 years ago, and yes there has been inflation but age does always matter and he's not any better now than he was then, so not sure why you're so sure he'll get paid big.

[Ice Man]

The few times we've been up 8-10 points with 4 minutes left and Billy still had the starters in I've seen complaints about it.

Every team plays their starters with 4 minutes left, unless the game is an utter blowout. For example, on Wednesday the Magic were up 12 with 1:20 left. Not only were Banchero and Franz Wagner in the game, but they finished it.

Those klnd of criticisms just kill the credibility of those who make them.

[sco]

Your post is not based in reality my friend. Nobody is paying Demar that kind of money at his age.

Sent from my SM-S918U using RealGM mobile app

Guess we'll see. The Bulls and DDR were FAR away from a deal the last time it was discussed. Far in dollars and years.

They most likely offered a 2/60-65 deal which Demars camp laughed at. For Demar to stay in Chicago, the Bulls are going to have to offer at least a 3 year 115 deal or more. Age wont be a negotiation point for the Bulls, he leads the entire NBA in MPG and is an iron man.

Hes going to win clutch player of the year and might make another all NBA team this year. He will get PAID.

The problem with projecting Demar's value this way is that Demar is a ball dominant isolation scorer and always has been. Considering his age, most likely only contending teams would have strong interest, and they all already have better #1 options, so chemistry becomes a major concern. Nobody offered Demar anywhere near what you're suggesting 2.5 years ago, and yes there has been inflation but age does always matter and he's not any better now than he was then, so not sure why you're so sure he'll get paid big.

I gotta say that I was surprised when I looked at Demar's stats this season:

23ppg 4.2rb 5.3ast 1.1stl .6blk 1.5TO shooting 47%fg 35%3pt (on 3 per game) and getting to the line 7.4 times per game.

For a guy who's rep is a no defense (1.1 stl), ball dominant (5.3ast/1.5to), non-3pt shooter 35% on 3 shots per game, he surprised me.

If AK isn't lying and doesn't want to tank, he has little choice but to keep Demar (and AC). I think by replacing those 2 with MLE-type guys, we probably would lose 50% more of our games (even with Zach and Pat back).

[League Circles]

Guess we'll see. The Bulls and DDR were FAR away from a deal the last time it was discussed. Far in dollars and years.

They most likely offered a 2/60-65 deal which Demars camp laughed at. For Demar to stay in Chicago, the Bulls are going to have to offer at least a 3 year 115 deal or more. Age wont be a negotiation point for the Bulls, he leads the entire NBA in MPG and is an iron man.

Hes going to win clutch player of the year and might make another all NBA team this year. He will get PAID.

The problem with projecting Demar's value this way is that Demar is a ball dominant isolation scorer and always has been. Considering his age, most likely only contending teams would have strong interest, and they all already have better #1 options, so chemistry becomes a major concern. Nobody offered Demar anywhere near what you're suggesting 2.5 years ago, and yes there has been inflation but age does always matter and he's not any better now than he was then, so not sure why you're so sure he'll get paid big.

I gotta say that I was surprised when I looked at Demar's stats this season:

23ppg 4.2rb 5.3ast 1.1stl .6blk 1.5TO shooting 47%fg 35%3pt (on 3 per game) and getting to the line 7.4 times per game.

For a guy who's rep is a no defense (1.1 stl), ball dominant (5.3ast/1.5to), non-3pt shooter 35% on 3 shots per game, he surprised me.

If AK isn't lying and doesn't want to tank, he has little choice but to keep Demar (and AC). I think by replacing those 2 with MLE-type guys, we probably would lose 50% more of our games (even with Zach and Pat back).

Demar is a poor or at least inconsistent defender but gets on board, like Vuc frankly, with the team's scheme and defensive identity based on focusing on deflections and steals. All of the players go for steals - look at big man Drummond's steal numbers this year. As for the assist/TO ratio, he is very good at not turning the ball over, and is definitely a competent creator. But he is undoubtedly ball dominant. That's not really a criticism frankly - I think the notion of constant ball movement being inherently good is wrong, but guys that excel by dominating the ball only work well when they are only one of 1 or 2 guys on the court that play that way.

I think it's imperative that we trade Caruso to rebalance the roster. Use him to move Vuc or Zach, or, if all else fails, Carter, and return a worthwhile 4/5 back so that Patrick and Ayo can have expanded roles at their proper perimeter positions.

[PurpleTrees]

Your post is not based in reality my friend. Nobody is paying Demar that kind of money at his age.

Sent from my SM-S918U using RealGM mobile app

Guess we'll see. The Bulls and DDR were FAR away from a deal the last time it was discussed. Far in dollars and years.

They most likely offered a 2/60-65 deal which Demars camp laughed at. For Demar to stay in Chicago, the Bulls are going to have to offer at least a 3 year 115 deal or more. Age wont be a negotiation point for the Bulls, he leads the entire NBA in MPG and is an iron man.

Hes going to win clutch player of the year and might make another all NBA team this year. He will get PAID.

The problem with projecting Demar's value this way is that Demar is a ball dominant isolation scorer and always has been. Considering his age, most likely only contending teams would have strong interest, and they all already have better #1 options, so chemistry becomes a major concern. Nobody offered Demar anywhere near what you're suggesting 2.5 years ago, and yes there has been inflation but age does always matter and he's not any better now than he was then, so not sure why you're so sure he'll get paid big.

Im going strictly by the facts here. There's no need to interject hypotheticals lol. GMs make free agent mistakes all the time while other GMs find diamonds. Steve Nash, Derozan, e.t.c.

Im not sure why youre so against it anyway. What are you going to do with the extra 10 mil per year?

Especially when:

The Bulls have 70 mil on the Bench. I think turning those into assets that can actually contribute is more of a priority to AKME than trying to penny pinch with an all NBA DDR.

Like I said, I guess we'll see.

[League Circles]

Guess we'll see. The Bulls and DDR were FAR away from a deal the last time it was discussed. Far in dollars and years.

They most likely offered a 2/60-65 deal which Demars camp laughed at. For Demar to stay in Chicago, the Bulls are going to have to offer at least a 3 year 115 deal or more. Age wont be a negotiation point for the Bulls, he leads the entire NBA in MPG and is an iron man.

Hes going to win clutch player of the year and might make another all NBA team this year. He will get PAID.

The problem with projecting Demar's value this way is that Demar is a ball dominant isolation scorer and always has been. Considering his age, most likely only contending teams would have strong interest, and they all already have better #1 options, so chemistry becomes a major concern. Nobody offered Demar anywhere near what you're suggesting 2.5 years ago, and yes there has been inflation but age does always matter and he's not any better now than he was then, so not sure why you're so sure he'll get paid big.

Im going strictly by the facts here. There's no need to interject hypotheticals lol. GMs make free agent mistakes all the time while other GMs find diamonds. Steve Nash, Derozan, e.t.c.

Im not sure why youre so against it anyway. What are you going to do with the extra 10 mil per year?

Especially when:

The Bulls have 70 mil on the Bench. I think turning those into assets that can actually contribute is more of a priority to AKME than trying to penny pinch with an all NBA DDR.

Like I said, I guess we'll see.

Well, I'm not saying I have a line in the sand for Demar at a certain dollar amount. Franky I don't care what we pay him next year, but beyond that it could sabotage possible free agent options especially because next summer (2025) is the last window when Coby will be on his value deal, and of course Lonzo expires then.

But there is a high chance that in a couple years Demar won't be nearly what he is now on the court, and that we won't even want him starting anymore. When guys like him age too much, they usually fall off a cliff of actual effectiveness, they don't decline nice and gradually like more role player types do IMO.

10 mil/year is like 50 mil of guaranteed money that could and should be offered to a free agent in 2025, or to absorb somebody in trade. We need to find SOME way to improve, and positioning ourselves with great value contracts like Coby is one of the more plausible paths because we don't have great trade assets and nothing on the horizon in terms of truly high draft picks. That's why I want to try to prioritize moving Zach and/or Vuc and/or Carter, while hoping to strike value deals with Demar, Patrick and maybe Drummond.

[Dez]

Guess we'll see. The Bulls and DDR were FAR away from a deal the last time it was discussed. Far in dollars and years.

They most likely offered a 2/60-65 deal which Demars camp laughed at. For Demar to stay in Chicago, the Bulls are going to have to offer at least a 3 year 115 deal or more. Age wont be a negotiation point for the Bulls, he leads the entire NBA in MPG and is an iron man.

Hes going to win clutch player of the year and might make another all NBA team this year. He will get PAID.

The problem with projecting Demar's value this way is that Demar is a ball dominant isolation scorer and always has been. Considering his age, most likely only contending teams would have strong interest, and they all already have better #1 options, so chemistry becomes a major concern. Nobody offered Demar anywhere near what you're suggesting 2.5 years ago, and yes there has been inflation but age does always matter and he's not any better now than he was then, so not sure why you're so sure he'll get paid big.

Im going strictly by the facts here. There's no need to interject hypotheticals lol. GMs make free agent mistakes all the time while other GMs find diamonds. Steve Nash, Derozan, e.t.c.

Im not sure why youre so against it anyway. What are you going to do with the extra 10 mil per year?

Especially when:

The Bulls have 70 mil on the Bench. I think turning those into assets that can actually contribute is more of a priority to AKME than trying to penny pinch with an all NBA DDR.

Like I said, I guess we'll see.

You're going by facts? Not interjecting hypotheticals?

They most likely offered a 2/60-65 deal which Demars camp laughed at.

For Demar to stay in Chicago, the Bulls are going to have to offer at least a 3 year 115 deal or more.

Interesting.......

[Stratmaster]

I feel like this has completely flown under the radar. A 34-year-old veteran is leading the league in MPG. I think we all wish we had a true franchise player in DeRozan's place, but I also think we don't appreciate him enough. There is a lot of talk about how his game is old-school, but he's also old-school in the best of ways. The man is a consummate professional. At this age, he still puts in the off-season work. He doesn't sit out. He loves taking younger players under his wing. He has arguably the most artistically beautiful footwork/mid-range game in the entire league, at times has been shakey but still is tremendous in the clutch. He also loves the game wholeheartedly, which is something that's becoming increasingly more rare.

As a side note, if Thibs was playing this many minutes he would be getting eaten alive. It might be because of the board's apathy, but I haven't seen Billy get criticized for this (Coby is also 7th in MPG).

That's so much else to dislike Donovan for that we never get this far down the list.

Sent from my SM-S911U using RealGM mobile app

[Stratmaster]

How is he clearly declining?

Scoring and efficiency are down.

His scoring is down marginally because he's given some of the offensive responsibility to Coby, plus Ayo's expanded offensive game has given him more of a role.

His efficiency is slightly down which can be attributed to taking more 3s.

He's not clearly declining.

I'm not arguing that he has declined... at least not on this post.

But the idea that taking Lavine's usage away and plugging in Coby's is the reason for a reduction in scoring just doesn't pass the smell test.

So, I looked up the objective data. His FG% is down significantly to his worst in the last 6 seasons. He is only taking one less shot attempt per game, and that is pretty much erased from a possession standpoint by his .5 increase in FTA per game. His PER is the lowest it has been since 2016. His TS% the lowest since 2019.

Sent from my SM-S911U using RealGM mobile app

[Chi town]

Demar is going for 35 to 40 mil a season. I dont know where some of you guys are getting 25 mil from. Hes a max player and would be eligible for 4/180. I see him signing a 4/155 deal, giving the Bulls a 25 mil discount over the 4 year term. The Bulls will need to trade Zach for this to happen, or be satisfied with a Demar S/T.

If you guys dont believe me, i guess we'll see this summer.

Your post is not based in reality my friend. Nobody is paying Demar that kind of money at his age.

Sent from my SM-S918U using RealGM mobile app

Guess we'll see. The Bulls and DDR were FAR away from a deal the last time it was discussed. Far in dollars and years.

They most likely offered a 2/60-65 deal which Demars camp laughed at. For Demar to stay in Chicago, the Bulls are going to have to offer at least a 3 year 115 deal or more. Age wont be a negotiation point for the Bulls, he leads the entire NBA in MPG and is an iron man.

Hes going to win clutch player of the year and might make another all NBA team this year. He will get PAID.

And who will be paying him 3/115?

It won’t be the Bulls.

[Chi town]

Scoring and efficiency are down.

His scoring is down marginally because he's given some of the offensive responsibility to Coby, plus Ayo's expanded offensive game has given him more of a role.

His efficiency is slightly down which can be attributed to taking more 3s.

He's not clearly declining.

I'm not arguing that he has declined... at least not on this post.

But the idea that taking Lavine's usage away and plugging in Coby's is the reason for a reduction in scoring just doesn't pass the smell test.

So, I looked up the objective data. His FG% is down significantly to his worst in the last 6 seasons. He is only taking one less shot attempt per game, and that is pretty much erased from a possession standpoint by his .5 increase in FTA per game. His PER is the lowest it has been since 2016. His TS% the lowest since 2019.

Sent from my SM-S911U using RealGM mobile app

THANK YOU for objective evidence.

Love DDR but he will only keep declining more rapidly.

Playing crazy mins won’t help either.

Would love to know his D stats because it’s OBVIOUS to see he plays no D to conserve for offense.

[prolific passer]

Your post is not based in reality my friend. Nobody is paying Demar that kind of money at his age.

Sent from my SM-S918U using RealGM mobile app

Guess we'll see. The Bulls and DDR were FAR away from a deal the last time it was discussed. Far in dollars and years.

They most likely offered a 2/60-65 deal which Demars camp laughed at. For Demar to stay in Chicago, the Bulls are going to have to offer at least a 3 year 115 deal or more. Age wont be a negotiation point for the Bulls, he leads the entire NBA in MPG and is an iron man.

Hes going to win clutch player of the year and might make another all NBA team this year. He will get PAID.

And who will be paying him 3/115?

It won’t be the Bulls.

It'll be the Lakers or clippers or probably suns.

Should have traded him when they had the chance.

[Chi town]

Guess we'll see. The Bulls and DDR were FAR away from a deal the last time it was discussed. Far in dollars and years.

They most likely offered a 2/60-65 deal which Demars camp laughed at. For Demar to stay in Chicago, the Bulls are going to have to offer at least a 3 year 115 deal or more. Age wont be a negotiation point for the Bulls, he leads the entire NBA in MPG and is an iron man.

Hes going to win clutch player of the year and might make another all NBA team this year. He will get PAID.

And who will be paying him 3/115?

It won’t be the Bulls.

It'll be the Lakers or clippers or probably suns.

Should have traded him when they had the chance.

They have NO cap space. Bulls won’t be taking back crazy salary.

[prolific passer]

His scoring is down marginally because he's given some of the offensive responsibility to Coby, plus Ayo's expanded offensive game has given him more of a role.

His efficiency is slightly down which can be attributed to taking more 3s.

He's not clearly declining.

I'm not arguing that he has declined... at least not on this post.

But the idea that taking Lavine's usage away and plugging in Coby's is the reason for a reduction in scoring just doesn't pass the smell test.

So, I looked up the objective data. His FG% is down significantly to his worst in the last 6 seasons. He is only taking one less shot attempt per game, and that is pretty much erased from a possession standpoint by his .5 increase in FTA per game. His PER is the lowest it has been since 2016. His TS% the lowest since 2019.

Sent from my SM-S911U using RealGM mobile app

THANK YOU for objective evidence.

Love DDR but he will only keep declining more rapidly.

Playing crazy mins won’t help either.

Would love to know his D stats because it’s OBVIOUS to see he plays no D to conserve for offense.

Jordan played a bunch of minutes at 34 with the bulls in 98 but then again the new trend is We Done With the 90s!!!!

[prolific passer]

And who will be paying him 3/115?

It won’t be the Bulls.

It'll be the Lakers or clippers or probably suns.

Should have traded him when they had the chance.

They have NO cap space. Bulls won’t be taking back crazy salary.

Is DeMar an unrestricted or restricted free agent in the off season?

[WindyCityBorn]

Scoring and efficiency are down.

His scoring is down marginally because he's given some of the offensive responsibility to Coby, plus Ayo's expanded offensive game has given him more of a role.

His efficiency is slightly down which can be attributed to taking more 3s.

He's not clearly declining.

I'm not arguing that he has declined... at least not on this post.

But the idea that taking Lavine's usage away and plugging in Coby's is the reason for a reduction in scoring just doesn't pass the smell test.

So, I looked up the objective data. His FG% is down significantly to his worst in the last 6 seasons. He is only taking one less shot attempt per game, and that is pretty much erased from a possession standpoint by his .5 increase in FTA per game. His PER is the lowest it has been since 2016. His TS% the lowest since 2019.

Sent from my SM-S911U using RealGM mobile app

Anyone who is arguing that DeRozan isn’t declining is real time is in denial. He is clearly not the same player he was two seasons ago. He might have 1 or 2 more seasons a middling first option left. One a great team he would be 3rd option now.

[Dez]

His scoring is down marginally because he's given some of the offensive responsibility to Coby, plus Ayo's expanded offensive game has given him more of a role.

His efficiency is slightly down which can be attributed to taking more 3s.

He's not clearly declining.

I'm not arguing that he has declined... at least not on this post.

But the idea that taking Lavine's usage away and plugging in Coby's is the reason for a reduction in scoring just doesn't pass the smell test.

So, I looked up the objective data. His FG% is down significantly to his worst in the last 6 seasons. He is only taking one less shot attempt per game, and that is pretty much erased from a possession standpoint by his .5 increase in FTA per game. His PER is the lowest it has been since 2016. His TS% the lowest since 2019.

Sent from my SM-S911U using RealGM mobile app

Anyone who is arguing that DeRozan isn’t declining is real time is in denial. He is clearly not the same player he was two seasons ago. He might have 1 or 2 more seasons a middling first option left. One a great team he would be 3rd option now.

And again you've shifted the goal posts, you said clearly declining and now you've backtracked to just declining.