Running of the Bulls by Girish Mirchandani

What if I told that the Bulls traded their home-grown All-Star for a combo guard coming off an ACL injury, a former lottery pick who is finding himself, a 20 yr. old Finnish bloke described as the next Channing Frye  while giving up the 16^th pick in the draft, would that be something you might be interested in (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=24BAkcUEujQ) ?  To most Bulls fans, analysts, and the general media (like me J), the trade does not seem fair and very compelling.  And if you break it down and look at in on paper, it’s not. But let’s first start to give a shout out and some love to Jimmy G Buckets…the dude is an absolute force.  He plays defense like he was on the Pistons Bad Boys team, shows up every night, and has gotten better every season.  And let this sink in: Butler was a starter in the 2017 All Star Team http://ble.ac/2t5x7bR.  So why did the Bulls do it?  A lot of the writers that cover the Bulls say that the Bulls needed to do it to finally rebuild. The popular term that is going around is that they picked a lane.  IMHO, it’s too early to tell if this trade makes any sense.  What if Lauri Markkanen (http://bit.ly/2nf2FFR)  is the next great stretch 4 or 5 that is going to tear up the league?  It could work out and maybe Kris Dunn develops into a starting point guard and Levine comes back strong from his knee injury.  I'm just not crazy about giving up the 16^th pick.  If you really want to rebuild, you would try to collect as many draft picks and hope the players you pick develop.  You never really can tell from the draft…the 28^th pick can be more productive than the 8^th pick.  So, wouldn’t you want to split Aces?  I also don’t’ believe in this whole mentality that you need to do a full rebuild and have to tank to become championship worthy. Sure, your next best player is likely going to come from the draft and free agents are not lining up to come and play in Chicago, however, I believe that philosophy is flawed.  If I were GM of the Bulls, I would make it my goal to make the playoffs every year while building a championship core.  I believe it can be done and you don’t have to sacrifice your only true superstar in your lineup to get better.  What if the Bulls instead, kept the 16^th pick, found a way to get Kyle Lowry and signed a veteran 4 that can defend the pick and roll?  Remember the Bulls were up 2 games against the Celtics before Rondo went down. I really hope Paxson has a plan that is going to work.  Hence the Bulls are running from their 3  Alphas strategy to a complete rebuild in the last year.. 

So enough about the Bulls.  Let’s talk about the Cavs.  I really thought they would go 6 or 7 games and even have a shot to make it competitive or even win before the series started but you saw how Kevin Durant just tore the Cavs apart and the Ws made it look easy. Yes, they are that good...so what do the Cavs do?  They maybe have a 2-yr. window (if LBJ signs next year) to win another one.  I would get rid of Kevin Love.  The dude was not impressive at all.  I used to be a believer but I don’t understand why someone of his size and shooting prowess, has not found a way to take it inside and make them pay.  The Cavs need an inside force and Love is the not the answer.  Can you imagine if the Cavs had someone that can post up and be a serious inside threat who commands double teams, while dishing to LeBron or Kyrie?  The Cavs should find a way to get LMA…

Other thoughts…Danny Ainge must have a grand plan and he has really positioned the Cs for success with their young assets, draft picks, and still have the potential to sign a Gordon Hayward along with a rock star coach…. Now off to the land of Pied Piper and SeeFood (Octopus not Oculus) for you Silicon Valley fans, the Warriors are simply too good.  There is not much to say.  They have a great front office, an amazing coaching staff, and players that can flat out ball.  Durant will probably get even better, Curry is young, Klay is solid, and Draymond can take on the White Walkers by himself….

To close off.. It will be interesting to see what the Spurs do, who the Rockets go after, and what happens to CP3 and Blake Griffin in LaLa Land.  

Thank you to all my fans, yes all of 6 of you for staying loyal while I have been radio silent.  And finally, this blog is dedicated to the most amazing person in my life…. you know who you are.  FRIENDS?