PG: Can't stop, won't stop

[ArizonaBullsFan]

They're 1 game ahead of getting the 6th pick. And Zach Lavine hasn't played a game.

LaVine is going to be rusty and likely on a minutes restricton. It doesn't seem likely that he'll affect winning right away.

Like Niko, right?

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Beautiful Strat, again a +1 just didn't do it justice.

[dumbell78]

The winning is very discouraging but the Led Zeppelin references in here are very encouraging.

[GimmeDat]

I think a guy who hasn't played basketball for a year is a bit different than a guy that trained at full strength all off-season than sat out a month with a facial injury. We're talking about an ACL here, do you really expect him to come out of the gates like Niko has?

I wouldn't completely rule it out, but I definitely wouldn't bet on it.

[DroseReturnChi]

Trade Mirotic, Portis, Lopez who arent part of the future and try to consolidate assets if possible. Bulls should get 3 first rounders off of this alone since they successfully built up their trade values so far. There's a possibility they cool down soon so sell high.

[ArizonaBullsFan]

Came to say this. Legit the worst front office in the league. When they want to win, they put a tragic team together. When they want to lose, they put a stacked team together. Its crazy

You can't possibly blame the front office for young players playing hard and wanting to win games.

You can blame them for doing a rebuild backwards. You don't start by acquiring 3 players that are going to help you win, but aren't likely to be your franchise guy.

Now they are going to have to possibly make a dump trade, lose Niko for little value, to correct this from going 'on' track, if not more people.

I'm still wondering why Lauri, Lavine and Dunn can't be franchise guys?

I hope the TLC (tank-loving club) realizes that whoever it is you want to tank for - Luka, Porter, Bomba, Bagley, I know those are the consensus, almost unanimous top-4 - probably NONE of them will match Lauri's current numbers next season when they are rookies.

Or look at sure-fire superstars like Lonzo the first 1/3 of his rookie season.

Or DSJ, the one that GarPax totally missed out on because they took a Euro who didn't come close to Porter, Bomba, Bagley in his college season.

I doubt if any of them will match Lavine's 19/game as a 3rd option in their 3rd seasons.

They might beat Dunn at 23, if they miss the majority of 2 seasons, like he did. Depends on how much more he improves over the final 2/3 of this season, he's already shocked the holy hell out of me with how much he's improved over the last 15 games or so.

This is getting to be sooooo fun for me, as much as I hated trading Jimmy and rebuilding, it's hard to imagine how I could possibly be any happier with the way things are going.

One would think that having seen Jimmy go from barely a first round pick to superstar might give people a clue about how important work ethic is, and that there would be absolutely no possible way they could even consider saying that nobody in The Great Jimmy Robbery of 2017 has a chance to be a superstar.

One would be wrong.

[VolumePoster]

Kris Dunn gonna make that Jimmy Butler leap as a player.

Third year bump.

[JohnnyTapwater]

Low key...This is good for the young kids.... They know they CAN win....

Love the dog in Dunn...

But can we stop winning now until Zack comes back please...

[VolumePoster]

Our 26yr old power forward just shredded one of the best defenses in the league with extreme efficiency, but some are complaining he should be traded. Isn't that a bitch? We are too spoiled around here. What's not to like about Niko? At 6ft10, he is a match-up nightmare because he can post you up, he can step outside, he can put it on the floor, he is a solid defender and he loves Chicago. This is the Niko we have been waiting to see over the past three years. He worked his ass off during the offseason to get where he is at, looking all confidenft and swagged up. Let's embrace it, goddamn it!

Pump the breaks my man. It's Niko we're talking about so a 3 game sample size means nothing.

With that said, if he does actually ball out consistently it will be a wonderful problem to have. I'd still rather trade him for a low lottery pick if the opportunity presents itself.

Pretty much.

[ArizonaBullsFan]

I think Dunn was saying that to the tank driver.

I think he saw 4 or 5 RealGM Bulls posters in the audience, that would explain the at least 4 "F HIM"s...

My guess is that Burke was baiting him to shoot the ball.

Very possible, good guess.

[ArizonaBullsFan]

when lauri returns, he should not start. unless it's at center next to niko. rolo is the odd man out here

Couldn't agree more.

Give me Lauri and Niko and Bobby for 32 minutes each. Any minutes they can't handle, Felicio.

[Louri]

when lauri returns, he should not start. unless it's at center next to niko. rolo is the odd man out here

Couldn't agree more.

Give me Lauri and Niko and Bobby for 32 minutes each. Any minutes they can't handle, Felicio.

And reason for Niko to start is...?

[Jeffster81]

The winning is very discouraging but the Led Zeppelin references in here are very encouraging.

Winning is NEVER discouraging, in fact it's encouraging. The tank will roll on soon enough, so enjoy one of the few times this year the Bulls are actually playing good basketball.

[ArizonaBullsFan]

At this point I'm really starting to wonder how the team would have done last year if they never signed Wade?

I know we make jokes about March Niko, but it can't be a coincidence that when ever he plays in this kind of role, he seems to excel, and that coincided with Wade being out last year.

Great post, but we had to sign Wade last year. And Rondo.

This rebuild started the day Rose was traded, at the latest. Really it started June 1, 2015, the day Hoiberg was hired - they started building a roster of Hoiball players not long after that. The only reason Jimmy wasn't gone the summer of 2016 was because Thibs wouldn't give them enough. Neither would Ainge.

There is one player on the roster who wasn't added since Hoiberg got the job - Niko. Because he's the perfect fit for Hoiball, of course they kept him. More on him later in this post.

Snell fit, he just couldn't hit the wide-open 3s when he was here. Long, athletic, good defender competent secondary ball-handler/creater if not asked to do too much. But he wasn't going to be worth what he'd get (and what MIL gave him) on his 2nd deal, so he was gone. His Per36 numbers here and in MIL are literally identical outside of 2 -
.351 3pt% here, .419 in MIL
4.7 2pt att here, 2.9 in MIL (and naturally his 2pt% is way up, he only takes layups. Only 20% of his shots are from 3 feet to the arc, 59% 3pt att, 20% layups)
Now he's finishing 0-3ft shots, 71.1% in MIL, 57.7% here

They added Felicio, big center size but quickness, and Portis, 3pt range and pretty good all-around offensive game

[Indomitable]

So, does Niko start over Lauri?

Of course. Her is the better player... for now.

Maybe this is why he beat Bobby out for the job.

[JimmyJammer]

I think a guy who hasn't played basketball for a year is a bit different than a guy that trained at full strength all off-season than sat out a month with a facial injury. We're talking about an ACL here, do you really expect him to come out of the gates like Niko has?

I wouldn't completely rule it out, but I definitely wouldn't bet on it.

There is no doubt in my mind that even a rusty LaVine will be way better than Holiday, Valentine and Zipser. You replace Holiday with LaVine and you keep Niko in the starting lineup, you are talking about a team that will compete with mostly any team in the East.

[Indomitable]

Butler was good for dribbling down the clock and pass it to you to protect his shooting numbers.

You cannot blame this on Jimmy. These players obviously put in work over the summer. Actually, maybe we have Jimmy to thank for that. He showed that dedicated nonstop selfimprovement can produce results

SMH.

Yeah thanks Jimmy. Thanks for teaching 2 layers you never played with and the guy you froze out what it takes!

And the coach you undermined.

Those 40 minutes nights are going to make him start to turn on thibby once again.

[ArizonaBullsFan]

Are you saying we will make the playoffs?

Finish the season in the playoffs, and Gar gets his 2nd Executive of the Year, maybe unanimously.

Certainly proves himself 10x the GM Thibs is so far (though it's early for Thibs, of course)

Because us in the playoffs would mean Gar beat Thibs up in the trade worse than Bobby did to Niko.

Gar?

By all accounts Pax has taken back full rein back, which is why Jimmy was traded in the first place.

Apparently i have to make stupid statements, you don't have to point them out.

I know that's the story, IMO I think Jimmy was gone last summer if GarPax gets a good enough offer, either from MIN or BOS.

[DuckIII]

These wins are very discouraging. We need trades ASAP.

[JimmyJammer]

The formula to success is simple. You turn Lauri into a center that will replace Lopez down the road and you find yourself a dynamic wing player in the draft or free agency. My choice is Michael Porter. I don't see why Niko cannot coexist with a young lineup like that. Trading young and productive veteran player away is not a recipe for success.
Niko
Porter
Lauri
Dunn
LaVine

Bobby, Valentine, Nwaba, Grant, Zipser, Blakeney and Felicio are your bench guys.

[Indomitable]

The odds of getting a superstar fall off massively after #2 if not even #1.

People can cite outliers where you get one at 5 or 7 or whatever, but they are terrible odds.

If this were a traditional draft with one headliner, then sure. But, there could potentially be anywhere from 3-4 players in the running for #1 overall. The odds are thrown out of the window in that scenario.

Draft narratives are almost always bull. This year is no exception.

The odds are very much still in place.

You do realize the Warriors were a team of mid lottery picks right. Durant who signed last year was is the only top 5 pick on that roster.

Lebron, Durants, and great bigs are always top 2 picks. I honestly do not see any Durants or Lebrons. The 7'0 footer Anton is the only guy that intrigues me that much in his draft.