GDHQNBA15_4pg-Chicago Bulls

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EASTERN CONFERENCE CENTRAL DIVISION Chicago With former League MVP Derrick Rose sidelined with repeated injuries, the Chicago Bulls embraced an identity of being one of the NBA’s most grinding teams last season. Defensively, Chicago was as good as anybody, with players like Joakim Noah, Taj Gibson, and Jimmy Butler shutting opponents down. Offensively, Chicago struggled to create shots, and at one point Noah embraced a unique role as a point center to try to create offense. The result was a team that made the playoffs but got bounced by Washington in the first round. Since then, a tremendous amount of attention has been paid to the Cavaliers, and for good reason. However, Chicago has quietly built a championship-worthy roster over the offseason as well. After signing veteran big man Pau Gasol and drafting pure scorer Doug McDermott, the Bulls have brought in players who can help them on offense. With Rose’s return, the Bulls have become Cleveland’s top challenger in the Eastern Conference. Defense Head coach Tom Thibodeau is very well known as a defensive guru, and that’s been the identity of his Chicago teams throughout his tenure. Thibodeau’s Bulls teams swarm to the ball, constantly putting pressure on the ball, disrupting passing lanes, denying open shots and forcing opponents into tough looks at the basket. Thibodeau’s teams have never finished worse than sixth in the League in defensive rating, and last year’s Bulls team finished second. The players most responsible for Chicago’s defensive mastery are center Noah and power forward Gibson. Noah is not a particularly big center, but he is lanky with an undying motor. He knows how to pressure the ball and is excellent at rotating and cutting off driving lanes. Noah always forces opponents to make an extra pass and rarely gets beaten on the inside. The same can be said for Gibson, a player who has been an advanced metrics darling for Chicago. Gibson graded out as a +3.64 on defense according to ESPN’s Real Plus-Minus, having also bought in to Thibodeau’s swarming, attacking defensive philosophy. Together, Noah and Gibson form a tandem that simply does not give up easy baskets very often. Chicago’s wing players are not quite as valuable on defense, but there’s not a particularly weak player among them. Mike Dunleavy is a very intelligent defender who doesn’t give up very much separation. Butler ranked eighth in the League in defensive Real Plus- Minus at the shooting guard position, behind league stalwarts such as Tony Allen, Thabo STARTERS G Derrick Rose G Jimmy Butler C Joakim Noah F Pau Gasol F Mike Dunleavy BENCH F Cameron Bairstow G Aaron Brooks F Taj Gibson G Kirk Hinrich F Doug McDermott F Nikola Mirotic G E’Twaun Moore F Tony Snell C Nazr Mohammed Derrick Rose


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