3. His rotations actually made sense
The Knicks had very little talent, especially among proven veterans, on the roster since Fizdale took over last season. While the Chicago Bulls aren’t the most talented team in the East, they do have a much deeper and better rotation than the Knicks. But their record isn’t all that much better than the Knicks so far this season.
A common joke out on the Knicks this season had to do with the imbalance of forwards compared to guards on this roster. All the free agent signings for the Knicks wound up loading up the frontcourt rotation, but the backcourt was left barren beyond a handful of young guards. And Dennis Smith Jr. and Frank Ntilikina are by no means potent long-term options as the Knicks point guard of the future.
The Knicks know what they’re going to get from their point guards, and Fizdale allotted the minutes accordingly. Meanwhile, four of the eight most played Bulls players this season (in terms of total minutes) are all point guards. There is a lack of wing depth for the Bulls, but there are ways to shuffle the rotation that make more sense than what Boylen is trying now.
Fizdale did do a nice job developing and allotting the proper minutes in proper roles to standout second-year center Mitchell Robinson and rookie shooting guard/small forward RJ Barrett.
The Bulls, and more specifically Boylen, should learn from this and give less playing time to lacking pieces like former Knicks center Luke Kornet and point guard Ryan Arcidiacono. He needs to give more specified roles and minutes to the likes of forward Thaddeus Young and big man Daniel Gafford.