The shake up in Chicago this off-season has been nothing short of shocking. Pau Gasol packed his bags and headed to Texas to sign with the San Antonio Spurs; Derrick Rose was sent off to New York along with Justin Holiday, in return for Robin Lopez, Jerian Grant and Jose Calderon. Joakim Noah then followed Rose to NYC in free agency.
But if that wasn’t enough of a shock… Rondo and Dwyane Wade signed for the Bulls!
The so called ‘big 3’ in Chicago now consists of D-Wade, Jimmy Butler, and Rajon Rondo!
Although the names sound good on paper, they each play very different styles, and it is difficult to understand how they will mesh and bring out the best of each others abilities.
Dwyane Wade enjoys having the ball in his hands, and has a tendency to drive to the basket, rather than shoot.
Rondo is arguably the best passer of the ball in the NBA right now. Despite difficult spells in Dallas and Sacramento, Rondo has continued to average above 10 assists per game.
The Bulls’ new backcourt has completely opposite game-styles. If that dilemma wasn’t enough, they somehow need to include Jimmy Butler in the offence! Butler can do a little bit of everything, and was chosen as the centerpiece of this new Bulls team, rather than Derrick Rose.
How those 3 players develop will be the ‘make or break’ of Chicago’s season. If the chemistry fails to grow between them, then it could ultimately be a disappointing season.
The Bulls may have struck gold in the 2016 NBA draft, taking 22 year old shooting guard Denzel Valentine from Michigan with the 14th pick. In his senior year with the Spartans, Valentine averaged 20 points, 8 assists and 7 rebounds, very unique and intriguing numbers coming from the shooting guard position! Valentine also led the Bulls to the NBA Summer League title in Las Vegas, hitting the game winner against the Timberwolves. His ability is exciting and i’m sure will prove to be a great pick up by Chicago.
The Bulls still have Nikola Mirotic, an exciting big who continues to improve year upon year.
The other new faces such as Robin Lopez and Jose Calderon look to bring added experience to the line-up. But there seems to be a lack of scoring firepower coming from the point guard position. It will be interesting to see how that works out.
This unique team, with a group of players with varying styles, will have to find a way to make it work. If not, they could be left in the dark once again when the playoffs come around.
