Chicago Bulls: end of season roundtable discussion

What’s one thing you want the Chicago Bulls to prioritize the most this summer?

LA: I want the Bulls to re-establish the winning culture. One season of tanking was enough. They should really focus on the draft, then on adding key free agents, and then on winning. No more sitting starters, no more seeing how the young guys can handle the big moments, it’s time to win – and that starts in the offseason.

DG: Hitting on their draft picks. This draft is going to be huge for the Bulls and they better make the right decisions. The Bulls can’t mess this up. If the Bulls hit on these draft picks, then it will set them up nicely for the long run.

KP: The Bulls need to hit on their free agency decision with Zach LaVine. I think LaVine is worth bringing back onto the team even though his return has left more questions than answers. However, the Bulls need to be careful with the financial side of things. These are the kinds of decisions that can crush a team’s cap and roster flexibility or open up opportunities for the Bulls to make bigger moves going forward.

LaVine is good. However, there are fair questions regarding just how good he will become. The Bulls need to be careful to not overpay LaVine because of his scoring prowess and flashiness and pay him based on how productive and impactful they believe he’ll be.

MO: I think that there are two keys to the Bulls offseason: keep it simple, and continue to gather assets. The most important thing for GarPax, and for fans, for that matter, is to not get impatient. This was just year one of a complete rebuild. Sure, there were some positive signs for the future, but there’s no need to muddy the waters with big, long contracts that are going to clog up the books for awhile. Let’s get one thing straight: the Chicago Bulls are not winning the title next season, nor are they the season after that. So why throw a bunch of money at a big free agent just so he can wither away on a still rebuilding team and take up cap space for another free agent in the future? Maybe take a flier on someone like Jabari Parker, Nerlens Noel, or Mario Hezonja, depending on the price, re-sign Zach LaVine, and roll into year two of the rebuild.

NN: I’d like to see the Bulls consolidate some of the spots on the team and figure out what they want their roster to look like. Chicago has a glut of guards right now that are either coming back for sure or could be re-signed. I’d like to see GarPax try to flip some of these guys if possible and add some depth to the wing. Otherwise, if the Bulls don’t address the center spot in the draft, I’d like to see them take a chance on a young big this summer. Even if it’s a reclamation project, I want to see some sort of plan for the future at the 5 spot that doesn’t bank on Felicio suddenly becoming decent.

IMK: The primary thing I would focus on if I were GarPax, besides the obvious which is getting LaVine on a long-term deal, would be to get another draft pick. Three first-round picks would help the Bulls a lot. Otherwise, the Bulls need to keep getting young players who have a lot of potential.

WL: Kris Dunn, Zach LaVine, and Lauri Markkanen getting as many reps together as possible. At times, those three individually controlled the court, but they looked like a mess when the trio shared the floor. The trio could end up being a devastating force, but not without some good ol’ fashion chemistry.

JH: I would like the Bulls to prioritize the future. The Bulls will have some cap space and flexibility to work with this summer. I just don’t want them to make moves and spend money just because they can. They need to be calculated and careful with what they do this summer. The last thing I want is them overpaying a guy and ruining our roster flexibility (I sound like Gar). I think Bulls fans realize that the team should be better next year, but we are probably another season or two away from making serious noise.

BB: I want the Bulls to focus on developing their young talent and players that surprised throughout this season. Kris Dunn and Zach LaVine ended the season on a disheartening note, so I want the Bulls to make sure those guys aren’t demoralized. Also, retaining players like Sean Kilpatrick will be extremely important for next season.