The NBA always keeps moving.
It does so figuratively, with the Bulls facing their former leader Tom Thibodeau and the Timberwolves on Sunday and Dwyane Wade’s old Heat team winning its 14th straight over the 76ers on Saturday.
And it does so literally, with the Suns racing to 19 fast-break points against a spiritless Bulls team Friday night, just 41 hours before the Bulls tip off against another young, athletic team under Thibodeau’s watch.
Nobody is saying the Suns or Timberwolves are better than the Bulls. The standings say otherwise.
But when the Bulls face teams like this — and the December blowout losses to the Bucks come to mind here — the disparity in athleticism between the young cores is noticeable.
Management knows this. Lost in the resulting hysteria and mocking of general Gar Forman’s "younger and more athletic" comment from last June is the full context of his quote. The day the Bulls traded Derrick Rose to the Knicks, Forman said this:
"We need to get younger and more athletic. We feel it’s the first step in that direction. Everything is not going to happen in a day."
In other words, Forman, whom the Tribune reported this week isn’t going anywhere along with executive vice president John Paxson, knew this would be a multi-year process.
The mocking rightfully followed when the Bulls signed Rajon Rondo, 30, and Dwyane Wade, who has turned 35 since joining the Bulls. Rondo won’t be back with the Bulls next season. Whether Wade is remains up to him exercising his player option.
As currently constructed, the Bulls (26-28) fly in the face of two of the biggest foundational blocks for most rosters — shooting and athleticism.
Jimmy Butler on Bulls’ 115-97 loss to Suns
Bulls forward Jimmy Butler reacts to the team’s 115-97 loss to the Suns on Friday, Feb. 10, 2017, in Phoenix. (K.C. Johnson/Chicago Tribune)
Bulls forward Jimmy Butler reacts to the team’s 115-97 loss to the Suns on Friday, Feb. 10, 2017, in Phoenix. (K.C. Johnson/Chicago Tribune)
See more videos
They have gone 15 straight games with single-digit 3-pointers and rank last — by a wide margin — in made 3-pointers per game at 6.4, attempts per game at 20.3 and percentage at 31.4. With the unexpected emergence of Paul Zipser mostly for reasons of consistency at both ends, Doug McDermott’s minutes have dropped from a high month of 27.4 per game in December to 16.2 this month.
"You have to play to the strengths of your team," Hoiberg said, almost wearily, when asked the morning of the Warriors’ loss about the lack of consistent perimeter shooting.
The Bulls will miss Zach LaVine on Sunday, who unfortunately tore his ACL. But seeing Devin Booker and Andrew Wiggins in consecutive games only seems to highlight the lack of widespread athleticism on the Bulls’ roster.
The Bulls are now 0-5 against the Bucks, Suns and Timberwolves this season. Rondo kept it real back in December.
"Out of 30 teams, we might be bottom three or four in athleticism," he said.
Fifty-four games in, what is the Bulls’ identity?
Entering Saturday’s league action, they rank first in rebounds, second in second-chance points and fourth in free throws made per game. Their offensive rating of 104.5 points per 100 possessions ranks 18th. Their offensive pace is 23rd. Surprisingly, they’re tied for 10th in fast-break points per game.
Defensively, they rank 12th in overall rating at 105.2 points allowed per 100 possessions but 21st in opponents’ field-goal percentage. Their point differential of minus-0.4 is 17th.
"We have a lot of different ways to win games, but we haven’t yet found a niche," Taj Gibson said. "We have the ability to become a defensive team but at times, a lack of shot-making affects our defense.
"If you look around, you really can’t dwell because you have like nine other teams (in the East) doing the same things — just up and down, take two steps forward and two back. It’s tough."
Wade keeps talking about the slim margin of error the Bulls possess to win.
"We’re not a team that can lollygag and not do things right and still put up 112-plus on you. We’ve proven that," Wade said. "When we do the things we need to do, we’re going to be in the games, no matter who we play. And the games we don’t, no matter who we play, we’re going to be beat."
That sounds like a team destined to hover around .500 all season, thankful to be in the Eastern Conference. As for the future, plenty of work remains.
kcjohnson@chicagotribune.com
Twitter @kcjhoop
Our editors found this article on this site using Google and regenerated it for our readers.
