Season In Review: Ronnie Brewer
As Brewer’s first season with the Bulls in 2010 concluded, Ronnie decided to get some extra work done and improve on his jumper throughout the summer. This season, Brewer spent his time sitting, wondering when he’ll play, just like Jimmy Butler, John Lucas and the rest of the gang. For Brewer, it seemed like all that extra hard work last summer was all for nothing.
Lucky for him, his time to shine came, as unfortunately Rip Hamilton was injuried early on in the season. With Hamilton down, Thibodeau turned to Brewer to step in. While he did average 22 minutes per game, Ronnie had to live up the expectations and I believe he did (in the begin) as he played for 66 games, averaged 24.8 minutes and 7 points per game this season.
Before the all-star break Ronnie played with confidence and it showed on January 10th 2012, as Brewer scored 17 points, 4 rebounds, 3 assists and played for 35 minutes leading the Bulls to a win against the Timberwolves with a total score of 111-100 Chicago at the Target Center, In Minneapolis.
Brewer’s hot streak would soon continue as he scored 20 points, got 10 rebounds, 5 assists and played for a total of 42 minutes against the Indiana Pacers on January 25th 2012. Unfortunately the Bulls would lose that game to a final score of 95-90 Pacers at the United Center. This game however would probably be Brewer’s highlight game of the season. He played tremendously, but unfortunately he needed help from the rest of the team.
After the All-Star break, Brewer’s streak would unfortunately face a sudden toll and go downhill. In a game against the Portland Trailblazers on March 16th 2012 at the United Center, Boozer, Deng, Noah & Watson step it up shooting +10 points. Brewer however was nowhere to be found. Starting for Rip still, Brewer played for 25 minutes, obtained 1 steals, 1 rebound and had a total of 3 points. At times, Kyle Korver replaced Brewer. Brewer definitely struggled in not only this game, but also other games. Looked as if his confidence was shattered.
That wasn’t even his worst game of the season. It was game 3 of the playoffs at the Wells Fargo Center. Brewer clearly frustrated, didn’t even play the entire game and just sat on the bench. He however didn’t let it get to him and in fact would support the team whenever he could and never complained. Good sportsmanship.
Overall
Ronnie had an all right season with the Bulls. He came into the season fully prepared and ready to go. Ready to lead the team to victory and drop numerous buckets. However as the season progressed, it seemed as if he couldn’t live up to the expectations, as it was kind of overwhelming. I personally don’t blame him. The reason being is because when the Bull’s signed Hamilton last year in the off-season, everybody thought Hamilton was going to be our savior and lead the teams pass the playoffs. Nobody ever thought Rose, Deng, Hamilton and C.J. would go down with so many injuries. Nobody. So for Brewer to fill in some big shoes was a lot of pressure. I like Brewer. I think he’s a great player on and off the court and has the right attitude. He just lets the pressure get to him and can’t really step up when the team needs him the most. It’s hard to live up to people’s expectations at times.
The question is what will Gar Forman and John Paxson do now, with Brewer’s contract not fully guaranteed for next season. They could ether decide to let him go, which would and give his minutes to Jimmy Butler, or they can decided to keep him and hope for the best. Butler as we know, is a cheaper option. Jimmy’s contract for the 2011-‘12 season was just over one million dollars. Brewer’s was nearly five million. Butler as I said before has a lot of potential and giving his minutes to Brewer would seem like the smart move as he’s the cheaper option, and with the salary cap and everything, the Bulls need to save money. Theres many reason why Brewer should be leave and many reason why he should stay. Whatever they decided to do with Brewer, we’ll just have to accept it and move on.
In the end, I wish him the best of luck in the future, whether or not he stays with the team.
Final Grade: C+
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