Race for Bulls’ starting point guard role may already be over

After just one preseason game, the race for the Chicago Bulls’ point guard job is only just getting started. But after Tuesday’s contest against the Pelicans, we may have already seen enough to draw our own conclusions.

If the three contenders for the starting position are Ayo Dosunmu, Goran Dragic, and Alex Caruso, it’s easy to see that one clearly stood out against NOLA. Unfortunately, that was because Dragic played significantly worse than the other two members of this backcourt trio.

After shooting 1-for-4 from the field, drawing no fouls, and playing his typically porous defense, I was honestly relieved to see Dragic check out after 13 minutes of playtime. He registered just one assist in that time and committed an egregious 3 turnovers. Worst of all, Dragic air-balled his lone 3-point attempt on an open shot from the corner that even elicited a few boos from the home crowd.

I can’t say I expected the 36-year-old veteran to go all out during the preseason, but one can’t help but feel like this was Dragic’s opportunity to make a big impression. Instead, he ended up playing far more like the player who had a career-worst season for the Brooklyn Nets last year, rather than the international star who has helped Slovenia rise to prominence in the basketball world.

Although nothing’s set in stone just yet, the Chicago Bulls seem to have already found their temporary replacement at point guard.

Among the other contenders, Caruso had a fair showing but five personal fouls kept him largely limited from impacting the game. Dosunmu, on the other hand, had a strong performance with 10 points, 3 assists, and 2 rebounds. He continued to find ways to affect the game without the ball in his hands and showed signs that his good shooting should carry over well from last season, knocking down two of three attempts from beyond the arc.

While the Bulls will likely continue to test out a variety of lineups before the regular season tips off, the fact that Dosunmu got the starting nod on day one likely says a lot about where the coaching staff’s heads are at. If continues to play well, the job is all but his.

Ironically, Dragic had nothing but positive things to say about the player who will most likely usurp him for the starting position.

With the Chicago Bulls’ next preseason game set to take place on Friday against the Denver Nuggets, it will only become increasingly difficult to make a case for Dragic or Caruso if Dosunmu continues to effectively carry the torch.