Abe, The OG Bulls Fan

Abe_theOGBullsfan@RoundtableIO

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Chicago Bulls fan since 1969

I write about the Chicago Bulls, with an old-school and outsider perspective. I write to educate myself and hopefully give over something new to the reader.

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With training camp starting up, how will a Tiago Splitter team differ from a Billy Donovan team?

Billy Donovan did not have a winning record as the coach of the Chicago Bulls. After six seasons and a 226-256 record there was need for change. But that does not mean Donovan did not create an identity for his team who over the last two seasons became one of the NBA’s fastest offenses. The system was built around the arrival of Josh Giddey, the speed of Ayo Dosunmu and the three point shooting of Coby White. Until Giddey arrived the offense had to make compromises with both DeMar DeRozan and Zach LaVine needing the ball. The result was a mid-range game, pick and roll offense that ranked near the bottom of the league in pace. But after the two stars left and Giddey arrived Donovan transitioned to something that copied what the Indiana Pacers were doing led by Tyrese Haliburton. The Bulls aimed to put a shot up within 14 seconds and suddenly the team was second in the league in pace. Inside the half court, they spaced out along the three-point line and even when penetrating the paint, the goal was to kick it out rather than a player trying to create a shot in isolation. The idea being that most of the game you do not have the ball in your hands. You cut, screen, and relocate to another shooting spot. Then White and Dosunmu were traded in February and although the system lived on for the remaining games, the Bulls roster had been decimated by Arturas Karnisovas’ poor decision making and after the season he was gone as Executive Vice President. Though the Bulls expressed a desire to bring back Donovan, being the class act that he has always been, he decided to resign so that incoming basketball operations chief Bryson Graham could hire his own coach and create the next version of the Chicago Bulls. The Bulls’ new coach is Tiago Splitter, who in 81 games as coach of the Portland Trailblazers led them to a seventh seed and a 42-39 record, good enough to allow the Bulls to finally secure the protected first round pick they had from the Lauri Markkanen trade. The Bulls used that pick to draft Dailyn Swain. So, Splitter was already helping the Bulls before he even got here. But what does Splitter believe to be the fix for a team lacking a superstar, with exciting young players surrounded by veterans looking to extend their NBA careers either with the Bulls or elsewhere? For one, Splitter is not a slowdown coach. His teams in Paris played fast and he recently quoted the legendary Greg Popovich on the Slappin’ Glass Podcast describing the second unit rule from the 2014 Spurs, a title team on which he played a key role, that each player had .5 seconds to shoot, drive or pass. He emphasizes quick thinking over fast feet. “You don’t need many sets. Rehearse one thing until it becomes automatic.” Unlike Donovan who wanted unpredictability by playing fast but not necessarily within a script, Splitter will have a short menu of sets to memorize and execute at full speed, including off-ball and screening action designed to create separation, confusion, or a driving lane in the half-court offense. Expect to see an assortment of screening action in the half court. - Drag Screens that happen early in transition where a big running slightly behind the ball handler sets a screen instead of continuing to his normal offensive position. This creates an advantage while a defense is back peddling and not set yet. - Ghost Screens or Fake Screens that the screener quickly fades away and then suddenly cuts away towards the wing or corner. As the defender hesitates on how to react, the point guard attacks the basket. - Flip Screens where the screener changes the orientation of the screen at the last second. This is designed to make it difficult for the defender to anticipate which way the ballhandler will go. - Off ball cuts reminiscent of Allen Iverson, where the ballhandler cuts without the ball from one wing to the other, above the free throw line while a big sets a screen for him to cross freely. The defensive player has to decide whether to follow the cutter, switch on the big, or let the crosser go and protect the paint. The goal of Splitters half court offense will be similar to Billy Ball in that the objective will be quick decisions, open threes, and paint touches. In other words, the two best shots will still be open threes and layups, but the teaching will be different. Where Donovan asked players to create open three-point shots through spontaneous movement, Splitter will want reads so familiar that they get executed instantly while keeping the defense guessing. Donovan’s five out philosophy was designed to clear the paint so ballhandlers could drive and attack closeouts. White and Dosunmu were exceptional at this. Splitter on the other hand, while still prioritizing spacing the floor will focus on the point guard and screens. Where Billy was a great coach for point guards, having been one himself, Splitter will be great for bigs, sharing his knowledge of how to set a screen, when to slip, and learning to stay on the same page as the ballhandler. Another difference will be about winning the possession game and defense. Donovan’s focus was offense, often resembling a hockey rotation with 10-11 fresh bodies available to keep running, even after makes, hoping to tire out the other team by the time crunch time arrived. Splitter on the other hand will play those capable of making quick decisions, sharing the ball, rebounding and most of all defending. The strategy will emphasize that defensive rebounding limits the other teams’ possessions, and offensive rebounding will create more opportunities to score. The only question that remains is whether this current roster has the skill sets that can produce at a high-level playing Tiago Ball. Here is how the roster will play out. Giddey is still the engine. A 6-foot-7 pass-first guard who sees the floor early is exactly the kind of initiator Splitter will love to build around. He is also a very strong rebounder for his position and big enough to set screens for others if necessary. The Giddey – Claxton screen action will form the base with everything playing off that. White is gone but Norman Powell will replace his scoring gravity as a movement shooter, and he will be a go to guy as the clock winds down. He is perfect for coming off screens without needing isolation possessions. White would often dribble too much in the half court. Powell will not do that. Newly acquired Buddy Hield is a catch and shoot specialist version of the same idea. Neither Powell nor Hield will be asked to be a second point guard. Their job will be to take advantage of screening and cutting actions. Dosunmu, who was a great cutter, is gone but Matas Buzelis who Splitter called a “complete package” with an unknown ceiling can become a reliable shooter and cutter. Expect to see plenty of wing-to-wing action with Matas getting screens above the free throw line. If he backs up Buzelis at the small forward position, Issac Okoro can play the role of cutter and defender who does not need the ball in his hands 95 percent of the time. But it is the young wings and bigs, consisting now of Dailyn Swain, Noa Essengue, Leonard Miller and Caleb Wilson, that will benefit most from the Bulls hiring a development coach rather than a veteran. Splitter said he will adapt to what they do best. But the “quick decision” theme will stay the same. No longer will we see the ball swing, a drive, a kick, another drive, leading to a late three. Starting tomorrow night with the opening of training camp, the Bulls will still play fast, share the ball and shoot a ton of three-point shots. But instead of trying to beat a defense by never stopping, the plan will be to repeat the same things until they become automatic and that includes rebounding and defense. Donavan tried to win as many games as possible after the departures of LaVine and DeRozan by running with the Bulls. Splitter job will be to prove they can run and play fast but with intention. Like the Europeans who stress the basics of basketball, the Bulls with a young team, are going back to basicsSep 28, 2026

BullsRoundtable

Why the Odds are Stacked Against Norman Powell Repeating as an All-Star

The Bulls' Norman Powell made the All-Star team for the first time in 2026 while playing his 11th season in Miami. Can he do it again in Chicago? A second-round pick in 2015 and playing for his fourth team, Powell averaged 21.7 points, 3.5 rebounds and 2.5 assists for the Heat last season, good enough to finally earn a spot on the Eastern Conference reserve list. Fans did not vote him in as a starter. Nobody had to get injured for him to take a roster spot. Head coaches chose him. The year before, in Los Angeles, he also had All-Star-level scoring, but the invite never came. Miami gave him the role he needed with increased usage and a need for him to provide offense, and the Eastern Conference had less competition than what he faced in Los Angeles. Timing also played a role. He may have benefited from injuries to Tyrese Haliburton and Trae Young. Still, after so many years, becoming a first-time all-star is rare. Players who first become All-Stars after 10 seasons in the league are few. The group is Mike Conley, Kyle Korver, Tyson Chandler, Sam Cassell, Anthony Mason, Vlade Divac, and Powell. How they got there is part of the story. None of the seven were fan-vote starters. Powell, Chandler, Cassell, and Mason were coaches’ reserves. Conley, Korver, and Divac needed someone else to get hurt. Conley replaced Devin Booker, who had already replaced Anthony Davis. Korver replaced Dwyane Wade. Divac replaced Shaquille O’Neal. What happened next is the rest of the story.  None of them made another All-Star team. Conley kept playing at a high level for years after Utah and never got a second nod. Korver stayed one of the best shooters in the league. Chandler had already won Defensive Player of the Year before earning an all-star birth but neither award came again. Cassell made All-NBA the same year he finally made the All-Star Game and that was still his only invitation. Mason was out of the league about two years later. Divac is the only Hall of Famer in the group, being voted in based on his entire body of work, including an honorable European career. As for Powell, he is now 33 years old and again on a new team, the Chicago Bulls, who should provide him with adequate minutes and usage to put up similar numbers to what he did last season. But another All-Star birth in the East is not going to be easy for a first-time All-Star who just signed with a team projected to be a bottom four team. The other players in this club got one weekend of fame and then went back to being very good veterans. With Young and Haliburton coming back and the Bulls trying to figure out an identity, it does not look like Powell will get the same league wide recognition as he did in Mami. To quote Powell, “We (the Bulls) have the potential to be really good, but we also have the potential to be really bad”. In short, it will be very difficult for Powell to make a second all-star team this season. The odds are against it. But the Bulls need him to “star” in the role that he will be asked to play, to be a savvy veteran and locker room presence, and an example for Matas Buzelis and Caleb Wilson on how to approach each game as professional NBA players.Sep 4, 2026

BullsRoundtable

Josh Giddey has persevered through difficult times and has only gotten better

If you don’t like him, you probably shouldn’t read this. First, a disclaimer. I must admit that before he came to the Bulls, I couldn’t stand him. The hockey flow hairstyle, the funny accent, the allegations all bothered me. Most of all, I hated his game and thought he sucked. But he won me over and this is why Soft skills are not spoken of enough in the NBA but in business they matter big time. Bryson Graham, the Bulls new Executive VP was hired largely because of his soft skills. After everything the Australian born Giddey has been through, in just a handful of NBA seasons, his maturity, his communication skills (his OKC teammates still love him) and his mental strength stand out. We are talking about a kid who left home as a teenager, dealt with public allegations that got investigated by police and the league, got benched in the playoffs, got traded, landed in a constantly shifting Chicago Bulls situation, and still has managed to push through injuries while turning himself into a near nightly triple-double machine. Bryson Graham should value that mental toughness. It’s a trait that Caleb Wilson and Matas Buzelis will also need to further develop. Norman Powell, who Graham brought on board, spent his career overcoming adversity to eventually become an all-star in his tenth year in the NBA. Giddey may not have SLAP or the most polished technical skills, but he’s got the grit needed to win close games and be a leader. He was barely 19 when the Oklahoma City Thunder drafted him sixth overall in 2021. He’d already shown he could handle big minutes in the NBL with Adelaide, but the NBA comes with a different culture, pace, and expectations. A lot of young overseas players take years to develop but Giddey averaged a solid 12.5 points, 7.8 rebounds and 6.4 assists as a rookie. The next year he was even better. He wasn’t flashy and obviously needed improvement, but he filled the box score with determination (a word that I think describes Giddey). Thunder executive Sam Presti may have thought at that point that he had found a potential foundational piece. Then came the 2023-24 season and the stuff that would have broken a lot of young players Social media posts in November 2023 accused him of an improper relationship with a minor from when he was 19. The Newport Beach police and the NBA both opened investigations. Police closed their case in January 2024, saying they couldn’t corroborate any criminal activity and wouldn’t file charges. The NBA followed suit in May and took no disciplinary action. Giddey continued to play through it all under constant scrutiny from media and heckling from fans. At his end-of-season exit interview he said, “There’s been days where you don’t feel like getting out of bed for a number of reasons. You have a couple bad games, you start to get in your own head, maybe you lose confidence. But for me, I’ve just tried to stay within the team as much as I can this year and that’s been the thing for me that I found that’s worked the best.” That says a lot about how he processes pressure. The basketball side of that year wasn’t a picnic either. His numbers dipped to 12.3 points, 6.4 rebounds and 4.8 assists and his role shifted on a championship caliber Thunder team. In the playoffs against Dallas his minutes got cut hard and he found himself on the bench for stretches. A lot of 21-year-olds would have sulked. Giddey owned it. “Coach did what he thought was best for the team and to be honest, I probably agree with him,” he said. “It’s a tough pill to swallow but for a 21-year-old to go through this now it’s probably a good thing and I just don’t want to feel this feeling again. It’ll make me a lot better and stronger as a player.” That next season OKC, a team led by a future two-time MVP, Shai Gilgeous-Alexander, wanted to use him more as a reserve. But Giddey wanted a bigger role, confident in his ability to lead an offense. Both sides handled it professionally and in June 2024 he was traded to the Chicago Bulls for defensive guru Alex Caruso. Although it was a fresh start, Giddey was going to a stale organization He was given a bigger opportunity, but also a completely different environment—one that has been anything but stable in the last couple years with roster changes, front-office shakeups, injuries everywhere, and eventually coaching changes. Giddey walked into that mess and raised his production to an almost all-star level. In 2024-25 he averaged 14.6 points, 8.1 rebounds and 7.2 assists. Then in 2025-26 he jumped to career highs of 17.0 points, 8.3 rebounds and 9.1 assists in 54 games, racking up 13 triple-doubles. That is a genuine near-triple-double production every night. Despite his production on the court, wins have not come easy and bitter Bulls fans still complain about the Caruso trade as if it’s his fault that the Bulls didn’t get picks included in the deal. His outside shooting was questioned (though he’s shooting 37% from three as a Bull), and his defense is still questioned. Even the hecklers still come out. At a November game in Charlotte last season, a fan sitting courtside was thrown out for aggressive remarks. Injuries have been part of the story too. Ankle rolls, hamstring strains, a forearm issue that flared up late in one season. He’s missed time when the medical staff insisted, but he’s also shown the competitive streak that refuses to sit when he feels he can go. It was obvious last season that he was often playing through pain. At 23 (turning 24 later this year), Giddey has already lived through the kind of turbulence that ends some careers before they really start. For the 2026-27 season, the Bulls have brought in a few new faces and a new coach. He will be joined by an all-star in Powell, a rising star in Buzelis, a potential franchise player in Wilson and a high-flying center in Nic Claxton. He has said “my job’s kind of always to get guys looks, to get guys open shots, make the game easy for them”. As a young veteran he will be empowered to lead an offense tailored to his skill set. For an NBA player still early in his journey and under contract for the next three seasons, Giddey is in position to take his game and his team to the next level. His technical skills as a player will continue to improve, but his acquired soft skills may be what distinguishes Giddey as a truly special player and leader. His constantly improved play, along with the mental toughness and “determination” to overcome trials and tribulations is why I have now grown to respect his game.Aug 15, 2026

BullsRoundtable

Matas Buzelis: Rising Above the Rim While Learning to Thrive Below It

Matas Buzelis: Rising Above the Rim While Learning to Thrive Below It How Playing for Lithuania Is Shaping Matas Buzelis’ Next Leap Matas Buzelis is best known as an above-the-rim athlete, and his explosiveness at the basket is one of his clearest strengths. At the 2024 NBA Draft Combine, he recorded a 38-inch max vertical and a 31-inch standing vertical—impressive marks for a 6’8” to 6’10” forward. That athleticism shows up in transition, on cuts, and as a help defender. Offensively, Buzelis is at his best above the rim, where he finishes with big dunks that often turn into highlights. He has already shown a varied dunk package and a fearless approach when attacking the basket. Defensively, his timing and leaping ability make him an effective rim protector, allowing him to block shots with authority and alter attempts around the basket. Although Buzelis’s first two NBA seasons have been shaped by above-the-rim plays on both ends, several areas still need refinement: The biggest next step is adding strength and physicality in the paint. Buzelis can still be bumped off his spots and does not always absorb contact well, which can push him toward fancy finishes, fadeaways, or relying on length instead of playing through defenders. More functional strength, especially in his lower body, would help him establish deeper position and finish more consistently inside. Defensively, his timing and length make him a capable shot-blocker, but added strength, better verticality, stronger box-outs, and a higher rebounding motor would make him a more reliable rim deterrent. That added strength would also support his finishing touch through contact. Buzelis has shown craft around the rim and can finish with either hand, but physical rim protection can still disrupt his touch and efficiency. He doesn’t draw fouls at a high rate and efficiency can dip against stronger/big defenders. As he develops better body control, balance, and softer touch instead of relying mostly on vertical pop, he should become a more dependable scorer below the rim. His handle is another area that will determine how much of his offense translates in the half court. When he drives into traffic or faces pressure, the ball can get loose, leading to strips and turnovers from help defenders. A tighter dribble and better ball protection would give him more room to create below the rim and make him harder to contain off the bounce. Those improvements would also help his post-game, which remains a work in progress. At this stage, he is still too light to consistently hold or create deep position, and stronger interior defenders can push him off balance. Developing a sturdier base and more reliable back-to-the-basket counters would make him more effective when operating near the block. The same physical development matters on the glass. Although Buzelis has improved as a rebounder, he is not yet consistently dominant for his size and position. Added strength and a more forceful approach would help him avoid being boxed out or outmuscled, giving him a better chance to turn his tools into steady production. The good news is that Buzelis possesses the tools and work ethis to fix all these areas with time and that is where his experience in Lithuania comes in. Buzelis’s summer with Lithuania gives him a different kind of development opportunity. He is set to making his senior national team debut during the 2027 FIBA World Cup Qualifiers, a meaningful step for a young player with deep Lithuanian roots. Instead of being eased into a limited role, he will be asked to contribute in a setting where every possession carries national-team pressure. What Lithuania can add to his development: Leadership and responsibilityPlaying for Lithuania places Buzelis in a high-expectation environment. As one of the program’s young headliners alongside Kasparas Jakucionis, he will be expected to produce while learning from veterans such as Jonas Valančiūnas. That responsibility can speed up the leadership growth he may not always get in the NBA right away. International basketball IQFIBA play should challenge him in ways the NBA does not. The game often features tighter spacing, more compact defenses, different officiating, and more structured half-court possessions. Those conditions can sharpen his off-ball movement, screening, passing reads, and decision-making when driving lanes close quickly. Veteran mentorshipWorking closely with Valančiūnas and other experienced Lithuanian players should also help Buzelis absorb the details of physical interior play, professional preparation, and national-team leadership. For a young forward still building strength and polish below the rim, that kind of daily example is valuable. Pressure, pride, and maturityRepresenting Lithuania also adds an emotional layer. Playing for his family’s roots, in front of passionate supporters and against experienced national teams, can build mental toughness. It gives him a chance to grow not just as a prospect, but as a player trusted to carry meaningful responsibility. Physical conditioning and skill workThe short, intense summer window should help him stay sharp after the NBA season. Practices and games with the national team give him more live reps against physical defenders while allowing him to keep building the strength, balance, and contact finishing that remain central to his development. For a 21-year-old still expanding his game, this experience should be more than a summer cameo. It can accelerate the areas that matter most for his NBA future: accountability, versatility, physicality, and confidence in high-pressure environments. Why the FIBA style matters: FIBA and international basketball are generally more physical and more condensed than the NBA, which makes the Lithuania experience especially useful for Buzelis. · More contact: International officiating often allows more bumps, hand pressure, and physicality on drives, screens, and post touches. · Crowded paint: With no NBA-style defensive three-second rule, bigs can stay closer to the rim, making finishes harder and driving lanes tighter. · Less space: The slightly smaller FIBA court compresses possessions and forces quicker reads. · Lithuanian toughness: Lithuania’s basketball identity emphasizes physical screens, disciplined defense, and strong interior play. That environment directly targets the parts of his game that still need growth. Buzelis will have to play through contact, hold his ground, improve his leverage, and make faster decisions when defenders take away space. In short, Lithuania gives him exactly the kind of reps that can make his below-the-rim game more reliable—and help those gains carry back to the Bulls.Jul 2, 2026

BullsRoundtable

Does it make sense for Coby White to return to the Chicago Bulls?

Final mock 2026 NBA drafts are coming out. With under a week to go before Adam Silver walks up to the podium and announces the picks, most NBA people agree that the Bulls have an easy choice at No. 4. One of AJ Dybantsa, Darryn Peterson, Cameron Boozer or Caleb Wilson will fall to them and there is not much to think about. The consensus still is that Caleb Wilson from the University of North Carolina will be a Bull. Either way, some Bulls fans will dislike the pick, preferring Darius Acuff, an offensive juggernaut, or Aday Mara, widely viewed as the best center in the class. Before the lottery, when the Bulls appeared locked into the ninth pick, I hoped they could somehow land Mara because an intimidating defensive presence in the paint has been a pressing need for years. After that top four pick, the Bulls will still need a center and if Wilson is the pick, they will need shooters. That also holds true if they draft Boozer. Only if Dybantsa or Peterson falls to them will they be able to focus strictly on a big at No. 15. Mock drafts have them choosing Hannes Steinbach, Jayden Quaintance or Chris Cenac Jr. to fill the need at center. Others have them drafting Cameron Carr for his shooting, with the assumption that Wilson or Boozer will be the pick at No. 4. One thing is clear: if the Bulls take a big at No. 15, they will need to add shooting either with the No. 38 pick, through a trade, or in free agency. Josh Giddey, Rob Dillingham, and Tre Jones are not known for stretching the floor. Without better half-court spacing, Matas Buzelis, Wilson and whichever big they select at No. 15 will have limited room to operate. Wilson made a comment recently about Bulls players drafted from North Carolina doing well for the team, an obvious reference to Michael Jordan. But there is another former Bulls player from North Carolina who had a decent career while playing for Chicago and that is Coby White. White, drafted with the seventh pick in the 2019 NBA draft by then general manager Gar Forman, managed to be the only player from that era to play all the years Artūras Karnišovas ran the team. A combo guard who became the all-time leading scorer in North Carolina high school basketball history, he played one year at UNC, where he broke the school record for the most three-point baskets by a freshman in school history. When he first came to the Bulls, the thought was that he would be a point guard and that is the position that White always saw for himself. Yet for the next few years, he bounced around between point guard and shooting guard. He also had injuries that hurt his development. Only after Josh Giddey and Tre Jones arrived in Chicago did Coby primarily operate as a shooting guard. He won player of the month in March of 2025 and finished second in sixth man of the year award for the 2024-25 season. He is second, only to Zach LaVine, for three pointers in Bulls history. White was traded to his hometown Charlotte Hornets at the February deadline, where he averaged 15.6 points in 19.3 minutes per game (as opposed to 29.1 mpg for the Bulls). His standout moment came in a play-in game against the Miami Heat, when he posted nineteen points on 5-of-8 shooting from three, along with five rebounds, three assists and two steals. Over one two-minute stretch, he sparked an 11-4 run by himself, putting Charlotte up six and helping send the Hornets to a second play-in game. The point is that White is a scorer by trade, who can play backup point guard as he did in Charlotte, can put up points in bunches, and he stretches the floor. He is the perfect spark plug off the bench, or starting shooting guard, for a team that can cover for his defensive lapses. The Bulls, having traded both him and Ayo Dosunmu, and then having to let go of Jaden Ivey, need what White has to offer. Dosunmu is in the same ballpark. Chicago fans would love to see a return to Chicago for their hometown favorite, and he could be their first choice of the two, but fans at the United Center loved Coby also. They never got to see what Coby could do with an athletic front line. Wilson, Matas Buzelis, Noa Essengue, Leonard Miller and Hannes Steinbach kicking out for open looks or running pick and roll with him would be quite different than playing him with a slow defensive center like Nikola Vucevic, who had the lowest vertical jump in the NBA, and DeMar DeRozan, whose game was as a master of the mid-range. What is Coby worth as a free agent on the open market? One would assume that he would ask for a deal that pays around $25 million annually. The Hornets own his bird rights, but the question is what would they be willing to pay for a backup guard? If they do not resign him, a sign and trade is possible. A recent rumor had the Detroit Pistons being interested in such a move to acquire him. Surely, White (and Ayo) would like to land on a playoff team but the Bulls have boatloads of cash, he is still young and there is exciting new energy in the building. New executive vice president of basketball operations Bryson Graham is rebuilding the roster and new head coach Tiago Splitter is bringing a new philosophy. After the draft, free agency will quickly jump into play. The Bulls will need a shooter, and Coby White may be deserving of another shot. The Bulls may want to remember that those Tar Heels do hold a special place in the heart of Bulls fans and “Caleb to Coby” has a nice ring to it, hopefully even a seventh ring.Jun 20, 2026

BullsRoundtable

The Chicago Bulls can look to the New York Knicks and know anything is possible

When my daughter was growing up, I tried to instill confidence in her and always said “you can do it, you can do it”. Then when she was seven years old, she had an accident at school, and we had to take her for emergency surgery. I, as the parent, was freaking out of course, and then she looked up at me and calmly said, “right dad, you can do it?”. The New York Knicks were the Chicago Bulls’ biggest rival back in the nineties, a team that I was forced to watch while living in New York for 16 years from 1997-2013. When they won the NBA championship last night, my gut tightened, my blood pressure went up and I had to listen to that same daughter, who became a Knicks fan after being raised in New York, call me and yell into the phone that “OG is the greatest!” Yes, it’s hard to watch. But I can do it. At least the star of the team did play high school ball in the Chicago area at Stevenson High School and won an Illinois state championship. The question is how did they do it? How did the forsaken NY Knicks win a title? On July 12, 2022, they signed Jalen Brunson on a four-year $104 million deal. “We are beyond thrilled to add Jalen Brunson to our organization,” said Knicks president Leon Rose. “He’s a competitor, a leader, a playmaker, and most importantly a winner. His addition is a perfect complement to the team that we are building and the culture we are establishing.” The key words being a “winner” and “culture”. They identified a player who was raised in the NBA limelight and has won at all levels, including two NCAA championships. They then surrounded him with a big man who can shoot lights out, a couple of two-way forwards that can take over a game when needed, and a lock down defensive wing who plays his quiet role on offense to perfection, always seeming to be in the right spots. All of them can defend. All of them can score. Three of them won college championships together. Looking at the Eastern Conference, there is no reason the New York Knicks should not be favored to get back to the finals next year. It took Jalen Brunson 8 years in the league and 4 years in NY to climb the mountain. They found the axis and added the spokes. That wheel is turning. What can the Chicago Bulls learn from how the Knicks built their team? The Bulls are on ground zero, like a flat tire. The first step is accepting that reality and remembering, as Bryson Graham said, that the goal is to build a sustainable winner. With two first round draft picks, he has his first shot at landing that special player. We have heard that this draft has four prospects that can become the cornerstone of a franchise. It just takes that one special player. Brunson certainly makes a case though for that player being someone who can score and have the ball in his hands in crunch time. Caleb Wilson, as great of an athlete as he is, does not seem to be the guy who will be a primary ball handler down the stretch. Perhaps that is why there is so much talk of the Bulls moving up for a second lottery pick. They need to find the player that the team can run a half-court offense through, “a competitor, a leader, a playmaker, and most importantly a winner.” Key word being playmaker. Of the first four picks, Cameron Boozer seems to fit that description the most. If he falls to the Bulls, we have our cornerstone. Caleb Wilson, who many believe has a higher ceiling than Boozer, AJ Dybansta, and Darryn Peterson, will be a special player but the case can be made that he is far away from being the guy with the ball in his hands during crunch time. That means that the Bulls need to surround him with pieces that make sense. The Bulls do have Josh Giddey, but Giddey struggles to create his own shot. They also have Matas Buzelis and Noa Essengue and Leonard Miller at forward. All similar in some sense to Wilson. What they will lack, even after drafting the explosive Wilson, is size, shooting and half-court offense. The good news is that they have cash flexibility; two first round picks this year and all their first-round picks going forward. With the 15th pick they can grab a center, shooter or playmaker. However, they won’t solely rely on the draft to find that special player. Brunson and Shai Gilgeous-Alexander won championships after being traded from teams that drafted them. There are fish in the sea if Bryson Graham knows how to cast a net and make some impactful trades. Realistically, turning the Chicago Bulls into the 2026 New York Knicks will take three to five years. In the meantime, we have a draft coming, a new coach, free agency and perhaps a couple surprising trades. Bulls’ fans will have to be patient but if the Knicks can do it, WE CAN DO IT!!!!Jun 15, 2026

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