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I was trying to figure this out and was struggling, wanted to get thoughts. This is a good problem, but who are the Bulls going to turn to down the stretch in the playoffs?

The four

1. Derrick Rose
2. Jimmy Butler
3. Pau Gasol
4. Niko Mirotic

Derrick shoots the most, but is the least efficient. Jimmy shoots the least but is very efficient. Pau tends to do his work in the 1st half, and Niko is mr. 4th quarter, but inexperienced.

What happens with the Bulls down 5 and 3 minutes left?

They shouldn't "turn to" anybody, just run the offense and the guy who has a good shot should shoot it. It's absolutely mind-blowing that teams predictably go to some stupid low percentage isolation play in "crunch time" just because they have a star player.

It's all just basketball.

I'd rank 'em

Derrick
Pau
Jimmy
Niko
Brooks
Snell

And Pau, Jimmy, Niko and AB can all step up and be 4th quarter closers, so Derrick should have plenty of space to work or plenty of deadly guys to pass to when the defense collapses on him.

meekrab wrote:They shouldn't "turn to" anybody, just run the offense and the guy who has a good shot should shoot it. It's absolutely mind-blowing that teams predictably go to some stupid low percentage isolation play in "crunch time" just because they have a star player.

It's all just basketball.

An isolation play with a star player isn't a low percentage play though. It's either giving your star a chance to go one on one (which is great if they're a one on one player like Durant, Harden, Westbrook etc...), or the chance to suck the defense in and find an open man for the shot. The problem comes when teams iso guys who just aren't that dominant or don't have favorable matchups or are poor decision makers who take bad shots or are unwilling passers.

Basically, you're better off with Niko, Jimmy, or Pau getting a shot in the flow of the offense, down the stretch included. Derrick needs to minimize taking contested shots with time on the shot clock because his teammates are more efficient than him. However, if the shot clock is winding down and there's less than 5 seconds to manufacture a shot, you'd trust Derrick to create his shot better than the others. If Derrick can start breaking people down more off the dribble again, that's great for Derrick and his teammates, regardless of whether his intent is to shoot or pass.

Polynice4Pippen wrote:I'd rank 'em

Derrick
Pau
Jimmy
Niko
Brooks
Snell

And Pau, Jimmy, Niko and AB can all step up and be 4th quarter closers, so Derrick should have plenty of space to work or plenty of deadly guys to pass to when the defense collapses on him.

To add on to that, it doesn't have to be solely Derrick going to work. A few of those guys can go to work, for themselves, and also create for others. This is a dynamic not seen on a Bulls team in quite some time.

mj234eva wrote:

Polynice4Pippen wrote:I'd rank 'em

Derrick
Pau
Jimmy
Niko
Brooks
Snell

And Pau, Jimmy, Niko and AB can all step up and be 4th quarter closers, so Derrick should have plenty of space to work or plenty of deadly guys to pass to when the defense collapses on him.

To add on to that, it doesn't have to be solely Derrick going to work. A few of those guys can go to work, for themselves, and also create for others. This is a dynamic not seen on a Bulls team in quite some time.

Yep, especially in the first 3 quarters. This should be nothing like the 2011 playoffs where it was all Derrick, all the time offensively.

I just love that this is a topic.

Amazing that we have options.

Not to mention that Tony Snell and Aaron Brooks can put up points in the 4th quarter too.

Polynice4Pippen wrote:Yep, especially in the first 3 quarters. This should be nothing like the 2011 playoffs where it was all Derrick, all the time offensively.

Can't wait to have everyone back healthy.

For one-on-one shot creation Rose, Butler, Pau then Niko(only last because he isn't playoff tested)

I agree with the idea of just putting them all out there running the offense and taking advantage of the match-ups. There should be no set hierarchy for shots.

back in 2011 derrick rose was a different player and more importantly he was the only player who could create his own shot and shots for others....this team is different rose isn't as efficient at getting to the paint and scoring...and more importantly we have other players who can create for themselves and others...butler and brooks on the perimeter, gasol in the high and low post , Mirotic, well everywhere it seems....noah can create for others at the high post but he can be shutdown by defenders stepping up and getting in his face, but its still an option.... If we we fail in the playoffs it shouldn't be because of lack of offensive options like in 2011 because this team has many...

Obviously, a lot depends on Rose and how he can play. But when he plays, he's still got to be the #1 option.

So I'd go:
1. Rose
2. Gasol
3. Butler
4. Mirotic

If anyone else steps up on a consistent basis, that's so huge for the Bulls. I still don't like the Bulls' odds if and when they face the Cavs, but if those 4 are actually firing on all cylinders, the Bulls have a shot. If not, they'll be done in 5. If the Bulls have to revert back to relying on Noah, Dunleavy, etc. to come up big, they're beyond screwed. Those 1-4 & Noah have to, absolutely have to be healthy.