Run of the Bulls

Some said last year was a fluke or lightning strike, which is said to not strike twice. Some critics said that they were a one man team that would only go as far as their best player would. Well despite the Philadelphia series, the Chicago Bulls has proven those critics wrong. This Bulls team came into a different style of season with more back to back games and showed the same heart and commitment to defense as they did last year. What also stood out about this team was the level of play they showed when their best player went down again and again. In a 66 game season Derrick Rose missed 27 games and the Bulls pulled in a 18-9 record. The since of urgency never came due to Rose’s returns throughout the season. The team plays a defense that is at times impenetrable and an energy that is on full throttle all the time. As they did last season, they handled and maintained the first seed from the Miami Heat and kept the best record in the league for a good part of the season. Can this bull’s team be better? Should this Bulls team be better? Yes and HELL YES. But how? First of I hope they have no parts of the future Amare shuffle or Melo drama. The future landscape of free agents aren’t as star driven as last year but there are some good players to be picked up to compete. I hope the Bulls bring in long athletic defenders and good swingmen that could get their own shots. I also think it’s time to part ways with Deng and Boozer in an effort to get better offensively. The coaching is great, the bench is solid, the defense is awesome, but the offense is too dependent on one player and transitional offense. It’s worked so far but they’ll keep hitting the wall with offensively strong teams that have length and energy. The Bulls are destined to meet the Heat in the playoffs to go to the finals and they’ll need offense and length to compliment the already strong bench and defense. The Heat are a very beatable team but they’re not going to be beat by just anybody. The Bulls are back and they’ll be back for awhile but in order to get over the hump they’ll need fire power. Like I said the free agent class this year isn’t as glamorous as last year but it is deep and solid. Big names like Kevin Garnett and Ray Allen may field plenty of offers but I doubt they’ll leave the Celtics, But with names like Kirk Hinrich, Mickael Pietrus, Brandon Bass, Amtwan Jamison, Jason Kidd, Jason Terry, Andre Miller, Lamar Odom, Brandon Jennings, Javale McGee, and many more the Bulls can make themselves an impressive team. This year has been something new and different to say the least but next year things will be back to normal. Teams will be healthy and ready with a full true off-season. For the Bulls to keep their place at the top of the east they’ll need to not just be better than the Heat, but they have to be better than both the up and coming Pacers and Sixers. They also have to be on a level to compete with the Spurs, Lakers, Clippers, and OKC Thunder (Best Team in the League).