SB Nation User Blog: Diz

Thorpe's New Sophomore Rankings: Rose #19

Diz — Fri, 20 Nov 2009 17:50:26 -0000

Thorpe's New Sophomore Rankings: Rose #19

Thorpe goes so far as to say that he expects Rose to be much higher by the end of the season, but based on production thus far, he's #19, with Beasley directly behind him at #20.

Marc Gasol took top honors.

Ben Gordon.

Diz — Mon, 16 Nov 2009 02:44:21 -0000

Ben Gordon.

When he's hot he's hot, but when he's cold...1 for 16. Ouch!

Interesting Trade Idea: S-Jax & Anthony Randolph

Diz — Mon, 09 Nov 2009 02:02:03 -0000

Someone on "Ask Sam" proposed an interesting Tyrus trade involving Golden State. Here are two variations that would work:

Trade #1: Tyrus and Salmons for Anthony Randolph and Stephen Jackson

Trade #2: Tyrus and Hinrich for Randolph, Jackson, and Speedy Claxton (for salary matching purposes)

There are definitely some problems with both scenarios - not the least of which is Tyrus' injury - but given Don Nelson and the Warrior's general dysfunction, it could have some legs.

Why The Bulls Do It:

At this point, we all know why Tyrus, Hinrich, and Salmons are all either expendable or not in the long term plan for this Bulls team. Personally, I am a big Tyrus fan, but it's clear that management has given up on him. Salmons and Hinrich are also very talented, but tenuous fits at best in the long term. Then there are the contract issues. Tyrus will be a restricted free agent, and it will be nearly impossible to resign him as well as sign a marquee free agent due to cap restrictions. Hinrich is a highly overpaid backup PG with a long-term contract. Salmons is highly underpaid, and will likely demand more money than is available either this summer (if he opts out), or next summer.

This leaves us in a situation where if we are successful in signing a marquee free agent, pretty much unless that free agent is Bosh, Taj Gibson will be the starting PF (yikes! I mean I like Taj, but he's no starter.). If the bulls are able to sign Wade or Joe Johnson, we'll be right back into "guard glut" territory. Plus the team would have an inefficiently humongous percentage of resources dedicated to the back court.

Hence the reasoning behind this trade. Anthony Randolph gives us much of what Tyrus does on the court, and does so without as many off court issues (seems like basically a good kid, though he does have a bit of a reputation). Even better, his contract is less than half of Tyrus' contract on an annual basis, and he has 2 years remaining, as opposed to Tyrus' 1 year. As a result, the Bulls - if still under the cap - will have the ability to sign a marquee free agent this summer without loosing their starting PF. The Bulls would then be in a good position to resign Randolph next year, as there is no problem going above the cap to extend your own player. Randolph's ceiling is perhaps even higher than than Tyrus', and he would probably value his floor time a lot more too after being stuck in Nellie's dog house.

...And then there's Stephen Jackson. Ok. I agree. He's not an ideal personality fit with this team (or maybe any!). But he does bring experience, a great all-around game, exemplory defense, and decent three point shooting. In a perfect world, the Bulls would turn this into a three team trade so as to avoid him actually putting on a Bulls uniform. But more than likely, we'd be stuck with him - at least for a little while. So I would suggest embracing "The Stephen Jackson Experiment" - at least initially. Give him until the trade deadline to see if he is capable of contributing on the court without disrupting our supposedly harmonious locker room. If it works, great. If not, put him back on the block. The Warriors are looking for a lot in return for him, and thus haven't found many suitors, but perhaps if all the Bulls were interested in was an expiring contract, there's a chance they could figure something out. That said, expiring contracts are a hot commodity going into this off season, so who knows.

If the Warriors will only accept Trade #1, and the Bulls can't find a way to trade Jackson, then we can kiss the Summer of 2010 goodbye (which would suck). If, however, the Warriors like Hinrich, and take Trade #2, then the Bulls are able to maintain cap space regardless of whether or not Jackson is traded before the summer (Jackson's contract is actually on par with Hinrich's, except one year longer). If the Bulls are unable to attract a max FA, and S-Jax actually fits in ok ith our team, then he can be the 2010 backup plan. Not a bad option at the 2 if he can find away to get along with the players and coaches.

In any event, it gives the Bulls a lot of flexibility by hedging our bets for summer 2010, and simultaneously providing one or two additional high quality players with which to attract free agents. The only truely terrible scenario is if he turns out to be a cancer and we can't trade him.

Why Golden State Does It:

The decision to extend Captain Jack has blown up in their face. He wants out, and the Warriors are trying to accommodate him, provided they get something decent back in return. Both Hinrich and Salmons are starting caliber players, both play multiple positions, and both should do well in Nellie's small ball system. They are likely to want Salmons more than Hinrich though, as they don't really need another PG (with Ellis and Curry on the roster), and Salmons' contract is much more palatable.

With regard to the other major component of this trade, Anthony Randolph is in Nellie's doghouse, and only getting 20 minutes per game. Perhaps Nellie would appreciate Tyrus Thomas' more developed game, and might believe (as I do) that a change of scenery would do Tyrus well. Tyrus' injury is certainly not helpful here, but it's unlikely that they'll be able to find a suitor for Jackson anytime soon. On the other hand, with Nellie's mercurial personality, it's entirely possible that he'll be playing Randolph 40 minutes per game by the time Tyrus is healthy, thus nullifying this whole idea.

Conclusion:

I'm still not convinced it's a great plan for either team, but it's definitely worth the Bulls looking into.

Poll

Which of the following is best for the Bulls?

Trade #1: Tyrus and Salmons for S-Jax and Randolph

22 votes

Trade #2: Tyrus and Hinrich for S-Jax, Randolph, and Claxton

16 votes

These are both really stupid.

59 votes

97 votes | Poll has closed

Contract/Cap Question for BAB

Diz — Fri, 06 Nov 2009 15:54:03 -0000

With everyone speculating about what The Org will be able to accomplish this summer with regard to free agents, Tyrus' extension, etc., I'd be interested to know the answer to this question:

Let's say (hypothetically) that the Bulls are able to create enough cap space to sign a max free agent without moving Tyrus or renouncing his rights, and the first thing they do this summer is sign Wade. Obviously this assumes that they have been able to create enough cap space around Tyrus' cap hold to sign Wade (probably not possible, but let's assume it is for now). Once the ink is dry on Wade's contract, can they then go ahead and sign Tyrus to a contract greater than his cap hold, thereby going above the cap due to the fact that the Bulls still own Tyrus' rights (and you're allowed to go above the cap to resign your own players)?

If this is legit, then this only works in that order: sign Wade first (so that total payroll is under the cap), then sign Tyrus (and legally go above the cap).

In reality, this is probably a moot point, as Tyrus' cap hold is likely to be greater than he is worth anyway, and the Bulls are unlikely to make the moves necessary to free up max FA cap space around his cap hold. However, if Tyrus has an underwhelming or injury plagued year - or the market for his services is quiet - maybe the bulls could sign him to a highly discounted deal (well below his cap hold), and still have room for Wade/Bosh/Johnson. In this scenario though, I think we're more likely to see Taj Gibson as starting PF rather than resigning Tyrus the rabble rousing trouble maker.

Ben Gordon Box Score

Diz — Thu, 08 Oct 2009 02:33:43 -0000

Ben Gordon Box Score

Not that we didn't know he could score, but BG lit it up against Skiles and the Bucks. Four for five from downtown.

Will Bynum put some points up too. I wonder if they'll handle their "guard glut" better than the Bulls...

Derrick Rose Recieves MVP Vote on ESPN.com Poll

Diz — Fri, 28 Aug 2009 16:47:11 -0000

Derrick Rose Recieves MVP Vote on ESPN.com Poll

Check out the "Also Receiving Votes" Section.

Wonder which genius voter decided to vote for him, but still cool that he's getting some props I guess.

Speaking of playoff matchups, can anyone tell me why the Sixers were trying to win Wednesday night...

Diz — Thu, 16 Apr 2009 20:12:29 -0000

Speaking of playoff matchups, can anyone tell me why the Sixers were trying to win Wednesday night instead of letting Theo Ratliff take 20 3-pointers and backing into a matchup with the Celtics? Even before the news broke Thursday about Kevin Garnett, it was clear that he was going to be in a diminished state in the postseason -- did Philly really prefer to play a healthy Orlando team instead of the partially defanged Celtics? It's not 2008 anymore, guys --- the Magic are the tougher out in this year's postseason.

For that matter, it appears the Bulls were trying to win, too -- again, what were they thinking? -- which only makes it sadder that they lost at home to Toronto.

John Hollinger

ESPN "Experts'" ROY Picks

Diz — Tue, 14 Apr 2009 15:32:38 -0000

ESPN "Experts'" ROY Picks

I'm a huge Hollinger fan, but seriously? It should be unanimous.

Inconsistency: A few stats on our unpredictable team.

Diz — Wed, 18 Mar 2009 04:33:26 -0000

With wins against three of the five top teams in the league, and losses against three of the five worst teams in the league, many of us don't know what to make of the Bulls this year. Unpredictable is an understatement. It seems as though, lately, we've been winning against all of our "top tier" opponents, and losing against our "easy" opponents. Just how does this trend play out across the full season?

What follows are calculations of our record in various situations across the season to date:

Overall Record: .456

Home Record: .656

Away Record: .278

Overtime Record: .250

Close Games (Absolute Margin <= 10): .432

Blowouts (Absolute Margin > 10): .484

Against Teams w/ Winning Record (including .500 teams): .359

Against Teams w/ Losing Record: .586

At Home Against Winning Teams: .556

At Home Against Losing Teams: .786

Away Against Winning Teams: .190

Away Against Losing Teams: .400

This isn't rocket science, and for the most part everything follows in line with expectations. That said, it is astounding to me that the Bulls' record against winning teams at home is nearly THREE TIMES that of our away record against winning teams!! Additionally, our record in close games is notably worse than non-close games (and my guess is that this differential should actually be higher as many of our "close wins" are actually blowouts in which we nearly relinquished the lead).

If the average age of the team was 28, this would be extremely troubling, but we are one of the youngest (if not the youngest?) team in the league. Therefore, it is not surprising that we are significantly better at home, and that we can't quite close out close games. With better coaching (from Vinny or his potential replacement), more playing time for our young guys, and improved cohesion as the newly reorganized team learns to play together, I expect our record to significantly improve next year. The good news is that we are most definitely getting it done at home. Hopefully the away record will follow in due time.

The Financial Case for Firing VDN (JR Take Note!)

Diz — Mon, 02 Mar 2009 17:16:22 -0000

Here's the million dollar question: What is wrong with the Bulls?

No real leader?
Identity issues?
No true all-star?
Lack of intensity and consistency?

If you ask me, all of these problems are directly related to coaching. A real coach would find a way to create an identity, elevate leaders, hand Derrick Rose (our true all-star) the keys to the car, and foster an environment in which lack of intensity is not tolerated, thereby leading to...consistency!

True, we don't have a legit "Big Three" or a Kobe or LeBron upon whose back we can ride to the Finals, but we absolutely do have a playoff team. Especially in the East! Given the struggles and injury issues compromising so many teams in the East this year, there is no reason that this Bulls team shouldn't have been a 5 or 6 seed.

Ok. Most of us here agree on this much, so I won't go into why benching D Rose in the 4th is a bad idea. Here comes the financial component:

In a major market such as Chicago, a playoff appearance would net the Bulls significant additional income. The odds of making the playoffs and potentially even advancing beyond the first round (this year or next) are markedly better with a competent coach. As a rookie coach with no prior experience, VDN's contract is a small one.

So add it all up! Firing VDN gives Chicago a much better shot at the playoffs, and therefore a shot at significant additional income that will likely exceed that of VDN's contract buyout as well as the difference between VDN's salary and the new coaches salary (which would likely be more than VDN's because he'd hopefully have enough experience to demand more).

Additionally, playoff experience and better coaching will allow Derrick Rose to progress faster, and might even elevate his ceiling further. Given that these are his formative years, it is important to put him in a position to succeed, and not do anything to stunt his development. There is a financial benefit associated with this as well, as the better D Rose becomes, the better the Bulls will be going forward, which in turn equals more revenue for the franchise whether it's playoff appearances, jersey sales, etc. Would Cleveland be as profitable without LeBron? I think not. Same logic applies here.

What coach wouldn't love to get their hands on this team?

Derrick Rose
Ben Gordon (if he's back next year)
Loul Deng
Tyrus Thomas
Joakim Noah
John Salmons
Brad Miller
Kirk Hinrich
Tim Thomas

Pax did his job by cleaning up the roster and providing us with legitimate veterans. Now it's time to get rid of the one remaining team cancer: VDN.