Chicago Bulls look towards NBA Draft in search of good shooting guard
The Chicago Bulls have a lot of decisions to make in the offseason.
After finishing the regular season tied for the best record in the league with the San Antonio Spurs, the Bulls were ousted in the first round of the playoffs by the Philadelphia 76ers.
The chaos started when star point guard Derrick Rose was sidelined for the rest of the season with an ACL injury to his left knee in Game 1of the first round. As the Bulls look towards next season, they have to face the reality
that Rose will be out for at least half of next season as he recovers from the injury. Luol Deng will also be missing in action the first few weeks as he plans on undergoing surgery on his left wrist after competing in the London Olympics in the summer.
With two star players out; the Bulls need replacements for their short term loss and also need to become better in shooting. They have been eyeing a good shooter to help spread the floor for quite some time and their experiment
with Richard Hamilton did not quite work last season.
Now their immediate chance is to look for a decent rookie. Vanderbilt shooting guard John Jenkins is one such option. He just came back from the NBA pre-draft combine in Chicago and was quite impressed with the Bulls team.
“You see Michael Jordan, Scottie Pippen, all the great coaches there, the championship banners, so it’s definitely motivation for me. I would love to play for them,” said Jenkins at the pre draft combine.
Jenkins is 6 ft 4 and one of the best shooting guards in the draft class this year. The Bulls will have the option of choosing between Jenkins, Kentucky Sophomore Doron Lamb and UC Santa Barbara senior Orlando Johnson with their
pick as these three players are anticipated to be around by that time.
Jenkins is the best shooter among them and could be a valuable addition to the Bulls. Not only would he be a good addition to the roster, he would allow the Bulls to opt out of their team options on Kyle Korver and Ronnie Brewer.
Korver is scheduled to earn $5 million in the 2012-2013 season while Brewer is expected to make $4.37 million. On the other hand, the Bulls would have to pay $1.028 and $1.105 million to a draft pick over the next two seasons,
according to the new rules of the CBA. That would allow the Bulls to make some space in the salary cap which can be utilized later.
With Rose out, the Bulls cannot let go C.J Watson’s $3.7 million option for next year as he is the backup point guard for the team. In such a situation, it would be highly favourable for the Bulls to land a good shooting guard
and make some cap space by letting go some of their commitments for next season.
They selected Jimmy Butler as the 30th pick in the Draft last year and he has become a good role player for them in one season, with a bright future ahead. Another sensible selection like that could boost the chances
of success in the upcoming off season.
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