Pippen Ain’t Easy roundtable: Where do the Chicago Bulls go from here?

Jan 24, 2017; Orlando, FL, USA; Chicago Bulls forward Jimmy Butler (21) works out prior to the game against the Orlando Magic at Amway Center. Mandatory Credit: Kim Klement-USA TODAY Sports
Jan 24, 2017; Orlando, FL, USA; Chicago Bulls forward Jimmy Butler (21) works out prior to the game against the Orlando Magic at Amway Center. Mandatory Credit: Kim Klement-USA TODAY Sports /
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Lauri Markkanen, one of the new members of the Chicago Bulls.
NEW YORK, NY – JUNE 22: Lauri Markkanen walks on stage with NBA commissioner Adam Silver after being drafted seventh overall by the Minnesota Timberwolves during the first round of the 2017 NBA Draft at Barclays Center on June 22, 2017 in New York City. NOTE TO USER: User expressly acknowledges and agrees that, by downloading and or using this photograph, User is consenting to the terms and conditions of the Getty Images License Agreement. (Photo by Mike Stobe/Getty Images) /

MW: Moving forward into the new-look Bulls, someone please explain to me how a team that’s supposedly now rebuilding, end up losing their own first-round pick in the Butler deal and then trade away (TRADE AWAY!) a second-round pick to the league’s best team for $3.5 million. (Here’s a hint, GarPax: If the world’s best basketball team wants a guy, that probably means he’s a good player and you should be paying more attention.) What happened on draft night? I’m still confused.

DB: Well by trading Jimmy Butler, throwing away a second round pick and drafting an international stretch-four who will surely go through his fair share of growing pains and struggles, Chicago has set themselves up to be terrible this season. That’ll set them up to get a high pick in the lottery (fingers crossed, Michael Porter Jr.) and at some point in the next decade be competitive.

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  • DC: Look, you can’t even comprehend the greens fees that Michael Reinsdorf is paying for the exclusive country that he and Gar and John Paxson are all part of. Also, Jerry is probably really tired of Michael showing up to his house, bleating, “Papa! Papa! Can I have the gold spoon now, papa? I’m a big boy and I need all the money!” So yeah, if we’re talking about rebuilding the Chicago White Sox or a mansion that one of the Reinsdorfs just bought, that $3.5 million is going a long way.

    As for rebuilding with Lauri Markkanen, maybe we’re just not ready for the next evolution in professional basketball. Chicago could be the first squad in the league to run a two-three combo of exclusively point guards and power forwards at all times, eliminating all other irrelevant positions.

    Every team wants big men who can do more than drop anchor at the rim, why not just eliminate it altogether, opting to run a Kris Dunn-Jerian GrantBobby Portis-Nikola Mirotic-Lauri Markkanen starting five? That’s ridiculous, you say? I suppose you’re right.

    This was a disaster and they traded for Kris Dunn when they could have just demanded something better or at least different and used the No. 7 pick to grab Dennis Smith, Jr.

    BH: If the strategy of being as bad as possible to get the best pick next year is the goal, the Bulls’ draft day moves were excellent. This team will be really, really bad.

    IK: C’mon, you know nobody can explain what the Bulls are doing with their rebuild. Heck, I doubt Fred Hoiberg even knows. I could even bet a million dollars that GarPax don’t even know what they’re doing. If I had to guess, they must be trying to get money for LaVine’s next contract with the selling of Jordan Bell to the Golden State Warriors, and may want to build around Markkanen like the Dallas Mavericks built around Dirk Nowitzki, a team that made two Finals and won one. But it’s hard to think that in today’s NBA.

    WL: It’s called “The Process”, where you draft zero assets and neglect second round value to help other teams get better faster than you can get worse. It’s worked well for teams like Sacramento and New Orleans in the past, so I’m interested to see the beauty of these choices really come back to bite GarPax in the tail.

    MP: Markkanen may not be a true centerpiece player, but he has the potential to do great things with the Bulls. At 7-foot, 230 pounds, “The Marksman” (no idea if that’s a nickname, but I enjoy calling him that) has the ability to play both the four and five. And in a league where stretching the floor appears to become more valuable every year, being able to play a sniper at the five during parts of the game could be very helpful for the Bulls. This is especially true for Chicago considering how terrible the other shooters on the team are. Nikola Mirotic is a similar player, but personally he’s never had as high a ceiling as Markkanen, and saying Lauri will just become Niko is an insult.

    RP: HELL YEAH, BABY. MAKE JERRY REINSDORF RICHER.

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