At the beginning of the season I would have said 'yes'. Now I would say 'maybe.' On paper I think we have more than enough talent, but we're less than the sum of our parts right now. As good as Derrick Rose is, I think the whole team is guilty of relying on him too much. I think the team has gotten to used to him saving the day and our offense has gotten complacent as a result. I also think Rose calls his own number *just* a tad more than is better for the team. Most games I usually go through stretches where I think to myself that the team would be better off if he gave up the ball a little earlier in the play. Of course, he's good enough that we can get away with it. But in a 7 game series a good defense could really make us work for our shots. We haven't really done a good job of involving Carlos Boozer the last 6 weeks either. With this team I'm an optimist. And I think the chance to use these last 20 games to gel will have a big difference too. But right now, we've got a few bad habits that we need to fix.
I think the team is suffering from the competing needs to be defensively suffocating and offensively free. It's hard to be both. We dominate the boards. But that requires people sticking around to see where the ball goes. Right now, we're more confident in winning through defense than through offense. So, we stick with what works. This is where having an offensively threatening shooting guard would really help in the half court offense. But if Boozer starts being more aggressive toward the hoop, that will help some. According to Thibs, the issue is energy, and if he means more motion and quicker decisions on passing, I guess I can see that.
Good points, and I can't disagree all that much. But a few counter arguments: 1). Dominating the boards should lead to more fast break opportunities, not less. 2). Our movement and passing in the half-court should be independent of what we do on defense. At least to an extent. 3). I agree that it's easiest to hang your hat on one side of the ball, but the best teams figure out a way to do it on both ends.
I'm getting mildly concerned about Boozer, and I think that's the main thing here. He's been a little less productive every month and it's now to the point where it's obvious he's in a bit of a slump. I did a quick estimate of possessions (I didn't use the real estimator given in Dean Olliver's Basketball on Paper, but did FGA+.4*FTA+TOs to get a rough idea - is that stat available anywhere online?) and got the following: Code: Poss Per Gm Per 36 PPP PPS Dec 322.6 20.2 22.5 1.02 1.36 Jan 247.4 19.0 21.5 1.00 1.28 Feb 193.6 17.6 19.2 0.93 1.18 Mar 71.6 17.9 20.0 0.75 0.95 That's an estimate of * Possessions * Possessions per game * Possessions per 36 minutes * Points per possession * Points per shot attempt That's just a quick back of the envelope calculation, but it's easy to see the downward trend in both the touches he's getting and what he's doing with them.
If I'm allowed a little tease, I went over all of the Bulls turnover numbers yesterday and found some very interesting material. I'll post it in full a little bit later, but the Bulls are 9-0, if memory serves, when they have ten or fewer turnovers. The other thing that stuck out was there was and is a huge increase of turnover whenever we have changes in the starting lineup -- when Boozer came back and now Noah. I think if the Bulls play defense like they have been, rebound like they have been, and control turnovers like they have for stretches, it's hard to beat them regardless of where there offense is at.
we need more offense from boozer and noah. We need to play at the top of our game, every game in the playoffs. Can we win it all? Yes, but it won't be easy.
Agree with all of this so rather than trying to pretend I have something to add...Good stuff, rosenthall.
I think it is But one of the keys is that we have to control the pace of our offense properly. We are the most dominant rebounding team in the league and my dear thunder pointed out how we fare when we control our turnovers to 10 or under a game. These 2 facts , combined , that we are one of , if not the best defensive team in the league mean that we can go all the way based on : 1. Controlling velocity of possession which in turn leads to 2. Lower % offense from the opposition ( based on frustration and rushed offense ) which make denial of scoring opportunity more able to be achieved All of this flows into the offense We have the machine to be a fast paced team that belts away out of our defense but is this prudent ? What I mean is transition offense can : 1. Blow up in your face if you muff it and give it up the other way that throws your defense out of sync and where you can give up a swing 2. Force a greater expend of energy that leads to lower execution on the offensive end ...which then puts even more pressure on your defense. The point is you can't win soley with defense , but if your calling card is defense first , then you must be smart and disciplined about the pace of your offense , see the vision for what drives every play , make that right call and then have the discipline to maintain and run/execute court positions for what the right offensive play is. And what I mean by that in simple terms 1. You got to pick your mark when to get out on the break through your defense and when not to and slow it down instead- and that's about the vision off the play if it is on , or if its an each way bet - then its about an instinctive call in judging the mood /attitude of your team and their team . What are the energy levels like ? Who's got the momentum ? What's at stake in terms of where the game is at ? 2. I too would like to see Jo and Booze sorting their space out .......but I think its a mistake to play Jo up top and establish Booze in the post as the staple spacing. Flip it. Booze needs to be playing up top with Jo at the back just outside the paint on the baselines to : - Give Derrick driving room - Estabish the pick and roll game where Booze's J is good enough to put pressure on the defense to drag his big out. It will also likely drag the other big to step up on the threat of the Rose drive which ... - Leaves Noah just outside of the post to be the board crasher or to be left unmarked for a power dribble / dunk move or his more than serviceable either hand hook if rotation comes and he's challenged. - Booze's passing game is good enough from the high post We still have the option of flipping back around and establishing Booze in the post if match ups work and defensive spacing works in this favour , but , with slower paced offense in the playoffs and against big front lines ....Booze was handled in Utah at critical times (like against the Lakers) when adjustments weren't made ......and they (the Jazz) didn't really have enough athleticism inside ( or size ) that they could put guys like Jo, Omer and Taj to play that role I have described for Joakim which would allow Booze to operate more out of the high post pick and roll spot and give him more room and chance of offensive success and which also would have opened Deron Williams up more ...and which if we follow this pattern ....will make Derrick Rose more lethal
I think we also have to consider that Boozer has missed a signficant chunk of the season ....and he and Rose just aren't as fish and chips as they need to be yet. Give them another season without interuption and with a credible 2 guard option ( again JJ Redick was the perfect fit IMO ) and with Lu continuing to play up to his maximum talent ( as he has done very well this season ) as the 3rd option ....and I think our offense will be fine But I would like to see Boozer playing more high post and Joakim playing just off the left block
Try and find a way to get JJ Redick . This was the right free agent target for us IMO Could Bulls and Magic trade with each other ( JJ Redick ) with consent thereby unwinding the rule that a player can't be traded to a team that made him an offer as an RFA ? I'd deal CJ Watson and Bogans for him + the lower of our 1st round picks and try and nab Nolan Smith with the higher of our picks. Start JJ and leave Brewer and Korver in reserve with Nolan Smith as the 1/2 combo.
Too much for Redick. Even though he would help us. I look for us to get a guard this summer. I dont look for us to keep any of our picks. Maybe one or two will be Euro players left in Europe for a while.