Chicago preview

Preview. Chicago Bulls. By George Wang. 99-00 Record : 17-65 Best Player : Elton Brand, 20.1ppg, 10.0rpg. Ron Mercer, 16.9ppg. Marcus Fizer, 2000 draft 4th overall pick. Brand, Fizer and Mercer will make one of the best young front courts in the East. Worst Player : Chris Anstey, best Australian export, Fred Hoiberg, only played because Jerry Krause wanted to get into the lottery. Rising Star : Brand, Fizer, Jamal Crawford. All have star potential. All are young and all are high draft picks. Key Acquisitions : Ron Mercer, Brad miller, Fizer No. 4 pick and Crawford No. 8 pick. Key Losses : No one to lose. ( Mihm through the draft, bone head move ) Rumors : Surrounding Fizer and Artest being traded for a big man.	Best move this off season : Not trading their draft picks for one single player. Worst move this off season : None, cause they coundn't make any moves. All their bad offseason moves happened last year. Tell me why? Crawford has potential, but Mihm is a stud at 7'0". So why trade Mihm for Crawford and then sign an overrated goof like Miller?
ProjectedLineup	2001TeamRoster
C BradMiller. People thinks that he will be a real solid and productive NBA center. When I look at Brad Miller, only one word springs into my mind. Overrated! Why would anyone place so much expectation on an undrafted 3rd year man who has never averaged more than 25 minutes per game in his entire career. PF EltonBrand. Many of his critics say that he's under sized, but he can play a Charles Barkley type role. He might be only 6 ft 8 inches ( listed ). But he has the body to bang with the big boys at 260lbs. Brand also has the added advantage of a 7 footer's wing span. With the bump and grind at the top level, Brand's numbers might experience some drop off in this year. Oh how Mihm would have been appreciated to be able to help out. SF MarcusFizer. A powerhouse at the power forward position in College. But much unproven as a small forward in the pros. Many say that he is too slow to play SF in the NBA at 270lbs, or he has no range on his jumper. But this mean machine can abuse opposition SF on the low block all day long. SG RonMercer. Probably is getting his last chance with the Bulls. An unwanted free agent by many clubs, Mercer was only signed by the bulls when the more high profile players all decided to turn their backs on Chicago. PG JamalCrawford. this guy impressed all at the pre draft camps which rocketed him up to No.8 in the draft. He definately has promise, at 6 ft 4 inches he is the large PG that most teams crave. But Crawford had a disrupted season at Michigan due to off court problems so I still consider him somewhat of an unknown package. ( my pick to be the bust of the season ) 6thMan RonArtest. Relegated to the bench upon Mercer's arrival. Artest will bring intensity and toughness. Artest solidified himself as one of the best players on the team last season averaging 12.0ppg and 1.65spg. The former St John's player proved himself to be more than serviceable at both the SG and SF positions and proved he could play at both ends of the floor. He and Mercer should alternate at shooting guard and small forward. WhatTheyHave. Young, fast and raw. The Bulls have a lot of new faces. All their starters can play with their back to or facing the basket. The Bulls also have something else, and that's still near 10m worth of cap room to enter a blockbuster trade before the season's end. Look for either Fizer or Artest to be involved in a trade for a legitimate big man. Krause still has his eyes firmly fixed on Duncan and also free agent to be Chris webber. WhatTheyNeed. A real center. All the big men on their roster are worthless. Can anyone say Chris Mihm? Chicago took the Texas Long Horn with the 7th overall pick in this year's draft before suddenly trading him for the No.8 pick PG. Jamal Crawford. Sure Crawford is a good prospect, but Mihm had the chance to be a stud at center. Anyway there were many other quality PGs on the market this off season. The most notable are free agents Avery Johnson Chauncey Billups. Rod Strickland, Kenny Anderson and Brevin Knight were also being shopped around for potential trades. 2001Projection. The Bulls should not have another 17 win season, nor can they afford one. With this bunch of mediocre youngsters in a division that is full of young talent ( Carter, Ray Allen, Jalen Rose ) Chicago will find it hard to break into a playoff position this season. Expect another losing season, probably around the 30 win mark. But with some future acquisitions via free agency trade or drafts, the Bulls could have a very competitive team on their hands. Right now, they still stink. More Teams.	Chris Anstey C tall skinny australian Chump. Ron Artest F/G Good young player that still can develop into a better player in the future. Dalibor Bagaric C Definitely not the answer at center for the Bulls. Chump. Corey Benjamin G Surprisingly, had some solid play last season. Elton Brand F Talented and hard working. Two much needed traits to become successful in this league. Will get better as the team improves around him. Jamal Crawford G Boom or Bust? I believe bust, but we will just have to wait and see. Khalid El-Amin G Short and fat. Chump. Marcus Fizer F Less developed version of Brand. Has more offensive tools though, will be a consistent scorer for years to come. A.J Guyton G Could surprise and win the backup point guard spot away from Matt Maloney. Hersey Hawkins G Is now past his prime, will be used as an impact scorer and veteran leader off the bench this season. Fred Hoiberg G slow white chump. Matt Maloney G Career bacup could see his minutes diminish this year with the arrival of Crawford and Guyton. Ron Mercer F/G Athletic slasher that will bring much needed penetration to the Bulls. Can't shoot to save himself though. Brad miller C Overrated chump. Michael Ruffin G More worthless chumps. Dragan Tarlac C Another European hole filler, again far from solving the center problems for this team. Yes, chump. Jake Voskuhl C Super fat and ugly white chump.