Q: Do you anticipate Lauri Markkanen being more aggressive and getting out of this funk sooner rather than later? - Jeremy K.
A: His career numbers suggest yes. Markkanen is an extremely talented offensive player. He can be a matchup nightmare. The Bulls are taking some solace in the fact Markkanen has missed plenty of open shots. That is true. And perhaps Markkanen’s now disclosed oblique injury has played a factor as well, though, since he has never landed on the injury report, that can’t be a major issue. Markkanen said it hasn’t affected his play. Plus, his slow start can’t be completely explained away by just those factors.
Markkanen has looked less aggressive. That could be a byproduct of him struggling to adapt to the new offensive system or spending less time in the post. Perhaps a stretch like he authored last February is on the way to make all this a moot point. But until his production nears his career marks---and this is the season it was supposed to be beyond it---such questions will remain. He was more aggressive in the Knicks game but then also committed six turnovers. Stay tuned.
If Lauri Markkanen continues to struggle, would it make sense to let him come off the bench and start Thad Young to get more production from the first unit? - JordynsDad, via Twitter
No chance. Thad Young is a complementary piece signed for the next two to three seasons to provide stability, durability and veteran leadership. Markkanen is a cornerstone for the rebuild. If anything, Markkanen needs to play more, or at least get more shots.
What potential do you see in Markkanen? Future All-Star or great role player? - Lawrence N.
Can the answer be somewhere in between? I had a conversation last season with someone I respect who has been associated with the NBA in some capacity for 30 years. This was during Markkanen’s breakout February. This person said Markkanen would be like Detlef Schrempf. My first reaction was to say, “No way.” Because you associate Schrempf with mostly coming off the bench. Then I looked up Schrempf’s career numbers and was like, “Man. What a solid career.” Dude averaged 13.9 points on 49 percent shooting, including 38 percent from 3-point range, over 16 seasons. Now that said, the Bulls need Markkanen to be an All-Star, or at least close to one, for this rebuild to fully take off towards success.
NBA
Can Daniel Gafford take Luke Kornet’s minutes? - Sears Centre Uber, via Twitter
Kornet dropped out of the first-half rotation for one game but then returned and then dropped out of the rotation completely against the Knicks. He has struggled defensively in the Bulls’ aggressive pick-and-roll coverage, so his touted rim protection hasn’t been very noticeable. Worse, he is shooting a career-low 21.7 percent chance from 3-point range. He entered this season at a career 35.8 percent. Gafford has become many fans’ favorite backup quarterback. His strengths of running the floor hard and playing with energy translate no matter the venue. However, Boylen has talked about staying on Gafford in practice about all that he demands from the center position. Boylen needs his center to be a strong communicator on defense. For now, that appears to be holding him back. And a three-man rotation at center is fine by me.
Is the foundation of Jim Boylen’s coaching purely based on analytics rather than on the players’ strengths and weaknesses? Kris Dunn can’t and doesn’t want to shoot 3-pointers, but he’s constantly stationed on the perimeter. PapaBearIII, via Twitter
Boylen is proud of the fact the Bulls lead the league in shots at the rim and have increased their 3-point attempts drastically from last season. Dunn never will be a consistent threat from the latter, but the opportunity for him to be a driver remains. Particularly since he is often paired with Coby White, who has been playing more off the ball. Offensively, I agree that Dunn hasn’t driven the ball as much as he did as a starter. He’s been solid defensively. As for Boylen’s approach, he keeps saying he believes in the math. So this approach is here to stay.
What do you think of the stadium’s new scoreboard? Devin M.
If it’s good enough for Derrick Rose, who noticed it and commented on it at Pistons shootaround when he was in town, it’s good enough for me.
Developing young players is one of the most essential parts of being a good NBA coach. Under Tom Thibodeau, Derrick Rose developed into an MVP, Luol Deng into an All-Star, Joakim Noah into a Defensive Player of the Year and All-Star and Jimmy Butler into Most Improved Player. All of the current young Bulls players, aside from Wendell Carter Jr., have badly regressed under Jim Boylen so far this season. Zach LaVine isn’t as efficient this season as he was last year, Lauri Markkanen looks like a shell of himself and Kris Dunn is practically unplayable on offense playing with a second unit. How is this lack of development being overlooked by the Bulls front office? - Dan B.
You’re assuming it is. You’re also assuming this all falls on the coaching staff. I somewhat agree with your overall premise, that only Carter has shown dramatic signs of growth through 10 games. I think LaVine’s decision-making and defense are coming on and I think Coby White has shown signs of growth beyond his scoring. A couple caveats: It’s early. And Boylen keeps citing players shooting well below their career averages on good shots. So he expects shots to fall and players like LaVine and Markkanen to play better.
What’s the vibe in the locker room right now with Bulls being at 4-7? - Hamza B.
Overall, it seems fine. There’s frustration, to be sure. But for now, guys are saying and doing the right things.
My questions are regarding the coaching. You point out almost every week that the bond between Boylen/Gar-Pax/Reinsdorf is as strong as you've seen, how committed they are, etc....but why? What has Boylen done to get such treatment? I'm not necessarily calling for his head, but many pro coaches have been fired for a lot less. Boylen seems like a solid assistant but why all this monumental trust? He hasn't won anything, and the team is somewhat healthy and they're still not winning, and aren't showing the improvement that they should've, since they added veterans, had a full training camp, etc. It'd be different if he had a track record other than being an assistant (and sure, see: Tom Thibodeau...but where's he now); maybe Doug Collins or D'Antoni or somebody, but I don't get it. And 2) I wasn't really a Hoiberg fan but I fear we're gonna end up back where we started, and have to wipe away both the Hoiberg/Boylen eras. I really thought they were showing signs of being a decent team under Hoiberg and couldn't understand why he didn't get the remainder of last season. The injuries made the season a waste and that wasn't his fault. Can't say I believe we would've won more games but it felt like his connection to the team was better, as well as style of play. Boylen swung from slow-it-down gritball to...now he's got the space/pace thing figured out, in less than a year? Again I don't get it, and despite what you've reported about how much he cares for his players etc. can't help but wonder how long before they tune him out. But I wanna see some wins! Totally happy with a scrappy, near .500 team. Shouldn't be out of the question for this bunch. Elijah H.
And it still could happen. I get the frustration. And skepticism for Boylen remains no doubt for some fans. If you’re aware of the bond between Boylen and management and ownership that I and others have reported about ad nauseum, then you should be aware of the reasons. They value his communication, collaboration and teaching. They think he’s the right voice to drill fundamentals into a young team. Perhaps more directly, Boylen and Paxson believe in a lot of the same philosophies---mental and physical toughness, hard-playing, fundamental basketball.
As for Hoiberg, he’d agree with you that he didn’t get a fair shot last season. Also reported then ad nauseum: Paxson believed the issues went beyond won-loss record and more to a lack of accountability and a lax approach in the locker room. I personally think Hoiberg would’ve loved to coach this current roster.
Lastly, here’s a news flash: Plenty of losing teams tune out coaches. At 4-7, it isn’t currently happening. It’s early.
Not sure if you've received this in the past, but something I have thought about over the last couple of years: Since the NBA switched to Nike last season and allowed teams to choose the color jersey they wear at home, why have the Bulls elected to go with red the vast majority of the time? Given the equity and history of the Bulls white home uniforms since MJ, it seems odd to make that shift. Wondering if anyone in the organization has given rationale, or maybe I am the only person it bothers? Just seems weird to make that switch with such iconic uniforms. – A.J. Schaub
I’m gonna go with the guess that red jerseys sell more? Surely marketing has something to do with it. Whatever the case, your question prompted me to discover a website I didn’t know existed. You can see which jersey each team is wearing for each game. Who knew? http://lockervision.nba.com/
Thanks for all the questions. Talk to you soon.
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