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Maybe it's the return of Scottie Pippen.
Maybe it's new GM John Paxson.
Maybe it's the Cubs.
Whatever the reason,
there is a new spirit around the Chicago Bulls these days. It's the feeling
of a fresh start. After five years of dismal basketball, a small sense of hope
has returned to Windy City hoops fans.
"I think myself and this team are definitely in store for a great season,"
center Eddy Curry said. "We're ready to step up and claim that role of
being one of the best teams in the East. That's pretty close to a guarantee.
I don't make guarantees, but if I wanted to bet, I'd bet we'd make the playoffs
this year."
Forgive Curry if he's getting a bit ahead of himself. After all, the Bulls were just 30-52 last season, including a 3-38 mark on the road. Meanwhile, other Eastern lottery teams, such as the Raptors, Wizards, Knicks and Cavaliers, all look to have improved as well. Ticketmaster
But there is no denying that Chicago -- after a wait seemingly as long as the one Cubs fans endured before seeing their team play for the NL pennant -- has a legitimate shot at making the playoffs. Paxson, the former point guard on the team's 1991-93 NBA title teams, has replaced Jerry Krause as GM and brought in a whole new attitude.
One of Paxson's first moves was to bring back Pippen, who signed a two-year, $10 million free-agent deal to return to Chicago. Paxson hopes Pippen, who spent the past four seasons with the Blazers, can provide some much-needed leadership and defense to the young Bulls. He also hopes Pippen, along with other members of the old Bulls dynasty -- coach Bill Cartwright and assistant GM B.J. Armstrong -- can restore some of the mojo of the team's glory days.
Like Cubs manager Dusty Baker, Paxson is intent on changing the losing attitude that has enveloped the franchise. It's why he recently invited Michael Jordan to watch practice -- an event that never would have occurred when Krause was around -- and why he had T-shirts issued to all players with the words "No Excuses" printed on them.
"At some point, I think everybody has to accept the fact we're in this business to get to the playoffs," Paxson said. "It's important we put expectations on these guys because there hasn't been any real urgency to start the season the last five years."
Opinion around the league is split on whether Chicago's young talent is ready to make the postseason. But the Bulls do have some new reasons to be optimistic.
More veterans: The addition of free agents Pippen and Kendall Gill give the Bulls two solid veterans who have been through NBA wars. They know how to play team defense, how to cover for teammates' mistakes, how to handle playing on the road. Ticketmaster
Pippen, if he stays healthy, can take over at point guard at the end of games and help take pressure off main scorer Jalen Rose. Meanwhile, Gill's presence might light a fire under athletic small forward Eddie Robinson, who has been a disappointment since joining the Bulls as a high-priced free agent three years ago.
"Experience," Cartwright said when asked the major difference between this year's team. "If we can stay healthy and pull ourselves together defensively, we'll be all right."
Health, as Cartwright noted, is a legitimate concern. Pippen is 38 with a balky knee. Gill, 35, played all 82 games a year ago with Minnesota, but did miss significant portions of each of his previous two seasons.
The Bulls are being careful to limit Pippen's minutes in practice, but that raises its own issues in terms of continuity and team chemistry. At one recent practice, Pippen was upstairs getting a massage while his teammates worked out on the floor. Will Chicago's young players listen to a guy who doesn't practice every day with them? And how will Rose take to sharing the ball and the spotlight with his former rival from those old Bulls-Pacers wars?
Eddy Curry: More than any other player, Curry holds the key to the Bulls' season. Some NBA insiders believe the 6-foot-11, 285-pound manchild could be the best center in the East. Others say he lacks toughness on the defensive end and doesn't rebound well enough.
Curry showed signs of being a dominant force over the second half of last season. He averaged 16.6 points and 6.2 rebounds after the All-Star break and wound up leading the NBA in field-goal percentage (58.5 percentage). Before Curry, Lakers superstar Shaquille O'Neal had led the league in that category five consecutive years.
But the reality is that Curry played well for only a few months, late in the season after the games became meaningless. Most of the time last year, his second NBA season after making the jump straight from high school, he struggled to pick up the nuances of team defense. He has been plagued with foul trouble, is still learning how to pass out of double teams and his conditioning has been spotty. This year he showed up for camp at less than optimum shape and immediately strained a hamstring.
The Bulls need Curry to be a pillar in the middle. With his size, quickness and soft hands, he can be a force in the post and draw double teams. On defense, he can keep opposing big men in check and protect the basket. But if he's not able to stay on the court and provide a consistent defensive presence, Chicago again will be exposed down low.
Said Cartwright: "We've got to make him a rebounder and a shot blocker and a protector of the post. If we can do that, he'll be twice the player he was last year." Ticketmaster
Better coaching: Perhaps Paxson's most underrated move this summer was to hire two veteran assistants, John Bach and Ron Adams. Bach, a 51-year coaching veteran, was the architect of Chicago's old "doberman defense" that helped the Bulls win their first three titles. Adams, in his 11th season, spent the past five seasons under George Karl in Milwaukee. Along with holdover Bob Thornton, the Bulls now have more teachers for their young players.
Bach, in particular, could play a major role. One way Cartwright hopes to improve the Bulls' defense is by playing more zone defenses, much like the Mavs and T'wolves have done in recent years. With so many long, athletic bodies like Curry, Rose, Pippen, Robinson, Donyell Marshall, Jamal Crawford and Tyson Chandler, Bach believes the Bulls could present major problems for opponents. "I see us becoming a much better team defensively," he said.
Adams and Bach also should help third-year point guard Crawford adapt to his role as starting point guard. With Jay Williams out for the season because of a summer motorcyle accident, Crawford will get the majority of minutes at the position. He must cut down on Chicago's high turnover rate and provide some defensive resistance at the top, two areas where coaching can make a difference.
The Cubs
You know the world has turned topsy-turvy when the Bulls are taking cues from the Cubs. But if Curry and the rest of the Baby Bulls need any inspiration in getting to the playoffs, they need look no further than Wrigley Field. After all, if the Cubs can reach the World Series, anything is possible.