Not As Bad As They Seem, Vol. 1: The Bulls

Watching the Bulls/Cavs game tonight, it was overtly clear that the Bulls aren't that bad -- not at all, really. Yet they sit at 29-45, 11th in the "weak" Eastern Conference. I put "weak" in quotes because talent wise, I don't think the East is nearly as weak as people think. As far as results go, well, I can't argue with the East's label as the clearly inferior conference.

But back to the Bulls. I think they have 13 guys on their roster who could make an argument for considerable playing time. Yup, I'm gonna list them: Shannon Brown, Luol Deng, Chris Duhon, Drew Gooden, Ben Gordon, Aaron Gray, Kirk Hinrich, Larry Hughes, Joakim Noah, Andres Nocioni, Thabo Sefolosha, Cedric Simmons, and Tyrus Thomas.

Now Brown, Gray and Simmons are younger guys who have all shown potential in limited minutes. However, I realize they are the bottom three of this list, so for argument's sake let's say head coach Jim Boylan wants to cut it down to a standard 10-man rotation. Gooden came down with what appears to be a season-ending injury toward the end of last week, so let's leave him out as well.

Left over nine: Deng, Duhon, Gordon, Hinrich, Hughes, Noah, Nocioni, Sefolosha and Thomas.

Deng, Gordon, Hinrich and Nocioni are the four key holdovers from the successful Chicago teams of the past two seasons. "If it ain't broke, don't fix it." I realize Deng, Gordon and Nocioni have battled nagging injuries, but if they're all available, why not just start them all? They have great continuity and fluidity as a unit, that's what made the Bulls a contender in the East the last two years. To stick to the cliche, Scott Skiles shouldn't have been fired, either.

So: PG-Hinrich, SG-Gordon, F-Nocioni, F-Deng. That leaves the center position, and with Gooden out, I guess Noah has earned that position with his play in the season's second half.

PG-Hinrich, SG-Gordon, F-Nocioni, F-Deng, C-Noah, 6-Hughes, 7-Sefolosha, 8-Thomas, 9-Duhon. That's not bad at all. Sefolosha has developed nicely this season, and is a rare young player with exceptional defensive skills. Hughes can handle duties at three different positions -- PG, SG, and if needed SF -- and Thomas brings energy, athleticism and exuberance. Duhon is a pretty heady combo guard.

I don't know. Do they look bad to you? Yea, this season was a mess with the Skiles firing and the Ben Wallace trade involving eight Bulls and Cavs -- but if they retain most of what they have here, I don't see any reason why the Bulls would struggle again next season. Find a solid replacement for the interim (Boylan) and they should be a top 4-6 Eastern team again. I'm sure some experienced coaches out there would love to inherit this level of talent. Maybe Mike Fratello, Larry Brown...hell, maybe even Hubie Brown.

Don't fret, Bulls fans. I think you guys are going to be OK in the near future.