Bulls offseason

[matfive2]

Not a Melo fan...and we just had an example year where a 1 Superstar team won the title, not a two or 2.5 (Bosh) superstar team won it.
 
Melo dominates the ball too much and does not play good D.  I don't really think we saw Asik play well until after the deal had fizzled to, so holding onto Noah (a team player) seemed to make sense over holding onto a me-first player.  The thing about Noah is that his stats do not really reflect what he does to help a team win.  The problem with Melo is that his stats do not make a team win. 
 
I think the whole reason for Butler and Mrotic vs moving up and getting Brooks is that Brooks is not ready to start now and we need a starter at the two guard.  With Butler we give Deng a few minutes of rest and improve depth.  Mrotic we can stash overseas and have a lottery pick level talent in a couple of years.  Brooks would have struggled to get minutes.
 
To your other post.  Will Ellis play good enough D for Thibs?  If so then I can see putting Taj in the deal.  If not, we get weaker defensively at two positions.  Something I do not think Thibs will allow.

Defense is not the end all be all in basketball, it might be for Thibs, but being able to create your own shot and score points is just as important. We need more two way players for sure, but we don't need any more one-way players when the one-way is defense. I'd take a couple one-way offense players, so I'd take a little less on defense from a Melo or an Ellis if it meant that other teams couldn't double and triple team DRose (who is a mediocre at best outside shooter).

The point of drafting Brooks would have been to have more scoring options, more scoring depth, not just for next year, but for the next several years. Instead we got more defensive depth (Butler). Great  just what we needed, more defense, so now we can hold teams to a few less points a game. Still doesn't change the fact that we will still lose to the Heat because we can't score enough points (not because our defense was bad).

And don't get me started on Noah, he was terrible for most of the season and was terrible in the playoffs. He's worthless if his put backs off of offensive RBs aren't falling + he's got the injury-prone label now in my book. Dude hasn't proved he can consistently stay healthy and we just signed him to a big money extension. 

[Firehawk]

Mat, did you read that review on butler and Brooks that I posted?

I think he brings up a  good point, if Brooks is so good then why did 25 teams pass on him?  This draft was not addressing the problems you are talking about, those problems are going to have to be addressed through FA, or a trade.

[matfive2]

Mat, did you read that review on butler and Brooks that I posted?

I think he brings up a  good point, if Brooks is so good then why did 25 teams pass on him?  This draft was not addressing the problems you are talking about, those problems are going to have to be addressed through FA, or a trade.

I did, besides Shumpert (stupid pick by Knicks), there weren't really any other 2Gs that were drafted before Brooks (mostly a mix of PGs, small combo guards, or Forwards/Centers). Also, a lot of the teams that picked before the Bulls are pretty set at the 2G spot or had more important needs to address. Brooks was one of the few decent true scoring 2Gs who has the size to stick at the position. Again, I'm not saying Brooks was going to come in and be the starting 2G next year, but he would have provided some scoring depth off of the bench with some pretty good upside for the future. I just don't see the point in Butler, we already have a Butler on the roster in Ronnie Brewer and I don't really see the point in having 2 of them on the same team. Why not draft something we don't have, namely an athletic 2G who can score and create his own shot?

And another reason I wanted Brooks was because I'm not as confident as you are that the Bulls are going to be able to address the 2G spot via trade or the FA market, especially with the payroll mess they're going to be in after they sign DRose to a max contract (as they want to do this offseason). The FA market for 2Gs sucks and any trade for a 2G would probably involve getting rid of some good assets. And none of the 2Gs rumored to be available for trade are any good, and the Bulls don't appear to have any interest in Ellis. If we had drafted Brooks, the worst case scenario is that you let Bogans walk, move Brewer into the starting lineup and have Brooks be the 2011-12 version of Brewer.

I know why the Bulls didn't draft Brooks, it's the same reason they haven't been rumored to be in on Ellis (because they aren't known for their defense) and I think that's just stupid considering defense is not really an issue for the current Bulls roster. Brooks filled a bigger need on the roster than Butler, IMHO.

[Lou Do]

Brooks was known to take plays off.  However, his size and length (long reach) plus athletic ability seems to me that he could become a good defensive player.  And you know with Thibs if you want to sniff the court (Boozer excepted ) you have to play D. 

[Big Phil]

Plus who knows maybe Butler is a guy someone wants in a deal for a two guard, too soon to tell

[Firehawk]

http://www.chicagotribune.com/sports/basketball/bulls/chi-rose-gives-bulls-top-pick-butler-a-warm-welcome-20110627,0,5798328.story

http://www.chicagotribune.com/sports/basketball/bulls/chi-gm-forman-mirotic-a-good-fit-with-rose-bulls-20110627,0,5016715.story

http://www.chicagotribune.com/sports/basketball/bulls/ct-spt-0626-bulls-jimmy-butler-chicag20110625,0,6690107.story

[Tesch27]

Considering the draft class, the Bulls did well. I like Butler alot...seems like a G/F type that will bring good energy and chemistry to the lockerroom. Mirotic seems like a nice pick in the making.