Webber: Melo Run from the Bulls

[Ice the knees]

I disagree with almost everything you said, but the part in bold is especially curious. Thibs can't magically turn players into good three-point shooters and ball-handlers.

Do you think bulls have good floor spacing?

how does pushing the ball and playing faster paced game correlate to having good ball handling? Do you think nba players dont have enough handle to push the ball in transition?

Teams get easier/better quality looks when they attack opposing defenses in transition. The bulls never look to take advantage in transition because they are content on wasting time and making every game defensive struggle.

This is only true when Rose is out

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[No-Man]

Webber has a point about Thibs, he just lost it speaking about McHale after that.

But hey, I won't bet my championship hopes on Rose's knees and Anthony will be doing that if he forces his way to Chicago.

It does not seem to be a wise move, especailly after being stuck with Amare for 2 seasons.

If I'm Anthony, I opt in and wait for 2015 FA where there will be many more options and everything will be clearer for him, regarding the Bulls and Rose, Houston, LeBron or even LA, and of course the Knicks situation.

Could the Knicks get LeBron in 2015 if LeBron does the same move as Carmelo, opt in?

Doesn't sound bad as a strategy.

[DannyNoonan1221]

"Chicago is a great destination and I think a guy like Melo or Kevin Love can really thrive there." - Nobody outside RealGM


Anybody else get this feeling sometimes?

Only if Brian Windhorst is on here

[the ultimates]

If the team can make a commitment to buy into the defensive end going forward, with Melo in the fold, Mchale doesn't have to be.

Their talent will trump all if their D catches up to their O

They have to have some defensive minded players. They only have three in Beverly, Asik and Howard. Howard and Asik can't play effectively together. Carmelo is lazy on the defensive end and wrecks a scheme if you have to play him at PF. Harden we have seen repeatedly doesn't give a damn about defense or doing anything that doesn't involve having the ball in his hands.

Which is why I said they need to buy in. It's the next step in their progression. If Harden shows he still doesn't care on that end then they'll never go anywhere. I think Melo is much more willing at this point of his career. Great offense can keep you in ANY ball game but defense is needed to truly win that gold ball. Still, you need great offense period. You're not holding a team like San Antonio to 80 ppg in a series. I'm looking at you Thomas Thibs

I think Melo will be better defensively playing at SF he was terrible for the Knicks on defense at PF. You keep saying they need to buy in. My question is buy in to what? I haven't seen any relevant defensive scheme from Houston other than try and funnel everything to Dwight. While Howard is still good defensively since the back injury he hasn't been nearly as good helping and recovering on pick and roll. He can't cover up for their multiple breakdowns on defense and their inability to contain dribble penetration.

[ATRAIN53]

Whatever Mr Borderline HOF player.

Maybe if you had won a trophy you'd be in there by now.

That might be the same logic Anthony uses to decide if he stays in NY or bails-
The guy knows he needs a better running mate than Peja Stojakivic or a journeyman coach like Rick Adelman to win a title......

[the ultimates]

Webber has a point about Thibs, he just lost it speaking about McHale after that.

But hey, I won't bet my championship hopes on Rose's knees and Anthony will be doing that if he forces his way to Chicago.

It does not seem to be a wise move, especailly after being stuck with Amare for 2 seasons.

If I'm Anthony, I opt in and wait for 2015 FA where there will be many more options and everything will be clearer for him, regarding the Bulls and Rose, Houston, LeBron or even LA, and of course the Knicks situation.

Could the Knicks get LeBron in 2015 if LeBron does the same move as Carmelo, opt in?

Doesn't sound bad as a strategy.

Derricks knee injuries and Amare's are totally different. Westbrook had surgery on the same knee 3 times in what less than a year to repair his meniscus and didn't lose any athletic ability why people feel it will suddenly happen to Rose after one surgery is head scratching. Once Houston gives this money to Parsons I don't think they would have the cap room or assets to trade because I highly doubt Lin or Asik will be around. LA is all about getting Love if he becomes a free agent they could go after Carmelo now but haven't given it any strong consideration. I just don't think Carmelo is going to waste another year of his career waiting on Lebron when he can leave and potentially get a title for himself next year.

[coldfish]

Webber has a point about Thibs, he just lost it speaking about McHale after that.

But hey, I won't bet my championship hopes on Rose's knees and Anthony will be doing that if he forces his way to Chicago.

It does not seem to be a wise move, especailly after being stuck with Amare for 2 seasons.

If I'm Anthony, I opt in and wait for 2015 FA where there will be many more options and everything will be clearer for him, regarding the Bulls and Rose, Houston, LeBron or even LA, and of course the Knicks situation.

Could the Knicks get LeBron in 2015 if LeBron does the same move as Carmelo, opt in?

Doesn't sound bad as a strategy.

Webber is wrong on Thibs. His comments are more a reflection of Webber's lack of homework on the current state of the NBA than on Thibs.

Regardless, Melo coming to the Bulls is a risk. One that many Bulls fans understate and it revolves around Rose's knees. With that said, Chicago offers the most upside out of anyone (see below) and they do so immediately. There are also risks in virtually every other potential situation.

Upside:
Rose / Hinrich
Butler
Melo
Gibson / Mirotic
Noah
With a constant stream of picks being selected by GM's who are good at drafting. If you project Rose at anything close to his MVP level, that team is going to steamroll the east for a while.

[TheStig]

Webber has a point about Thibs, he just lost it speaking about McHale after that.

But hey, I won't bet my championship hopes on Rose's knees and Anthony will be doing that if he forces his way to Chicago.

It does not seem to be a wise move, especailly after being stuck with Amare for 2 seasons.

If I'm Anthony, I opt in and wait for 2015 FA where there will be many more options and everything will be clearer for him, regarding the Bulls and Rose, Houston, LeBron or even LA, and of course the Knicks situation.

Could the Knicks get LeBron in 2015 if LeBron does the same move as Carmelo, opt in?

Doesn't sound bad as a strategy.

I don't think Thibs is a bad offensive coach. He has to play the players he has. Loul Deng, John Lucas, DJ, and Nate have enjoyed their best years under Thibs. Hell, he designed an offensive system built around Joakim Noah! Joakim Noah, a guy who can't post up and can barely hit a shot looked like Vlade Divac last year. The only guys who look better outside of Chicago were Korver and Marco. And Marco just looks better because he is on the Spurs.

When Rose was healthy, we had the #5 and #11 offense. Last year Joakim Noah as the center piece of our offense. I don't think Thibs gets enough credit for playing to his players strengths.

[Chitownbulls]

Derrick Rose dribbles the ball up the court....passes it to Melo at the elbow. Melo jab jab jumper.

D Rose has never had the option of doing that and this will help save his career imo.

[DannyNoonan1221]

Derrick Rose dribbles the ball up the court....passes it to Melo at the elbow. Melo jab jab jumper.

D Rose has never had the option of doing that and this will help save his career imo.

Couldn't agree more. He's never had somebody who can look at him and say, "I got this" at the offensive end.

And now he has a completely different Noah then before the injuries, a more confident butler....

It's become extremely difficult not to get my hopes up about Melo.

[TheStig]

Derrick Rose dribbles the ball up the court....passes it to Melo at the elbow. Melo jab jab jumper.

D Rose has never had the option of doing that and this will help save his career imo.

I think the Bulls finally realize that its easy to stop Derrick Rose when you surround him with 4 defensive players. How many times did we see him being trapped at half court? Or PG or Bron switched at him with a double coming. You're just going to fail in the post season with no answer to that.

Melo won't allow teams to that. He will torch them if he has a 4 on 3 or is open.

[Tenchi Ryu]

Looks like most general NBA fans are calling Webber dumb as hell for the comments...good.

[6_Rings]

Webber calling a timeout they don't have again.

[MrSparkle]

I don't think Thibs is a bad offensive coach. He has to play the players he has. Loul Deng, John Lucas, DJ, and Nate have enjoyed their best years under Thibs. Hell, he designed an offensive system built around Joakim Noah! Joakim Noah, a guy who can't post up and can barely hit a shot looked like Vlade Divac last year. The only guys who look better outside of Chicago were Korver and Marco. And Marco just looks better because he is on the Spurs.

When Rose was healthy, we had the #5 and #11 offense. Last year Joakim Noah as the center piece of our offense. I don't think Thibs gets enough credit for playing to his players strengths.

Good points, and I'll even contend the bold part... Marco was a starter/6th man for us, with more defensive attention (thus worse FG%), and being asked to shoulder more defensive load, along with Korver. It's pretty fair to say those guys are better players on their new teams because they went through a career transition year, learning to play better, bigger roles under Thibs.

TheStig... i'm with you -- for the lot of Bulls fans criticizing Thibs' offensive decisions, they simply have no idea how much they're taking him for granted. Why is HE the scapegoat? He has a winning playoff record with Rose on the floor: 10-7, and well rated offenses when Rose played. Not to mention he got the back-to-back #1 seeds (all-NBA) seeds with a lot of recurring injuries in his starting lineups (Boozer's hand, Noah's plantar, Rose's ankle tweaks, Rip's chronic breakdowns). I mean, a vet. min. 3rd-string PG played numerous games that season, and the team still was winning at a big percentage. We easily handled Philly in game 1, displaying great 2-way ball.

Thibs has had his #1 option miss the post-season for 3 years in a row. It'd be like people murmuring that Popovic can't evolve his coaching, or it's time for him to go, if he kept getting bounced in the 1st round with Duncan injured for 3 playoffs straight (except he's had 2 more vet. stars to design an offense for).

That's why any of this "Thibs can't coach offense" crap needs to stop, right now. Thibs understands both sides of the ball, you just gotta give him a good roster.

Granted, it's coming from Webber this time, but it's frustrating seeing Bulls fans side with Webber's garbage rant. I'd be willing to bet that Melo/Howard/Harden NEVER wins a championship. That's the crappiest SG/SF defense in the league, in a tougher conference. Melo to Bulls would give us like 90% odds if being a #1 seed. I mean, we're talking about hypothetically adding 2 all-star scoring options (Rose, Melo) and a hyped scoring option (Mirotic) to a 4-seed.

[BobsBurger]

[
He is correct about Thibs not adapting and growing, with how Thibs is he'll never be the best coach in the nba.

Just a hint, Kevin McHale, who ran one of the most simplistic offenses in the league will also not ever be the best coach in the NBA. On top of that, he will never be as good a coach as Tom Thibodeau.

My argument doesn't preside over offense or defense but over the fact he's a stubborn and unwillful man. He's to disengaged from human reality it seems.

[DRoseCantStop]

Derrick Rose dribbles the ball up the court....passes it to Melo at the elbow. Melo jab jab jumper.

D Rose has never had the option of doing that and this will help save his career imo.

Couldn't agree more. He's never had somebody who can look at him and say, "I got this" at the offensive end.

[Chitownbulls]

Who paid Chris Webber to say this lol?

Seriously though....why did he even come out to say this? Doesn't make sense

[jl342323]

Spacing is dictated by the players on the floor. If you have versatile players who can shoot/drive/pass, you're going to have good spacing. If you don't, teams are going to muck up the middle of the floor.

Pushing the ball in transition and actually getting a quality shot AND being able to finish are not directly proportional. For example, Luol Deng was a pretty awful ball handler and passer. How many times did we see him fumble the ball or make the wrong read on a break?

And playing at a faster pace does not guarantee better offense. The Lakers were 2nd in pace, and 21st in offensive rating.

Quality offense has always been and always will be about offensive talent.

Yea Spacing is dictated by the players. They can position themselves in the right position and at the same time be a threat offensively to create enough space to operate an efficient offense. They show zero resemblance of playing high iq/fundamentally sound offense. (see my sig. That is your answer)

Playing in transition = getting a good look before an opposing defense set up their defense. It could be a fastbreak or good open look with 15 seconds left in the shot clock. The bulls do terrible job or just neglect doing these things.

Attention to detail will get you better quality shot.

The bulls struggle mightily on the half court. Why should they not take advantage easy opportunities by pushing the ball and playing transitional offense? I know the answer to this question tho. Thibs is too scared of his defense falling apart by increasing the pace of the game.

Thibs is just like Dantoni. They are stuck in their own ways. Pop was like that once, but he adapted to the game. Bulls fans should hope This can do it too.

[jl342323]

This is only true when Rose is out

Derrick Rose had no space to attack the heat back in 2011 tho. I guess that was because Thibs was using defensively line + Rose against quick and agile miami D.

Seriously their D with joel anthony was so much better than their defense this year.

[jumpmanjay]

This is an odd stance by Weber. I would say he's throwing out propaganda, but what does he have to gain from it?

I think it likely is C WEBB just talking out of his rear end.

Maybe the Rockets paid him off. It wouldn't be the first time the Rockets actively tried screwing us.