The Chicago Bulls flirted with a Kevin Love trade this offseason and now that the deal with Taj Gibson, Doug McDermott and Nikola Mirotic is off, names like As Andrew Bynum, Andray Blatche and Ramon Sessions could be options for Derrick Rose and Pau Gasol support in free agency to help add more depth to the bench this season.
The Bulls are coming into the season with high expectations and they are getting back Derrick Rose after dealing with two years of injuries, while Pau Gasol joins up for this run as well. According to ESPN.com, the Cavaliers have won out over the Bulls and Warriors for the Kevin Love trade and that means that the deal involving Taj Gibson, Doug McDermott and Nikola Mirotic is off. While that would have been excellent for the Bulls, the status quo is still very good and with the Paul George injury with the Pacers, the team has a good chance to make a run in the east.
According to Pro Basketball Talk, Andrew Bynum, Andray Blatche and Ramon Sessions are still on the market and those are names that could be looked at if the team wants more depth on the bench. The team did an excellent job adding Gasol this offseason and he should be a massive boost up front with Joakim Noah heading into next season. Noah and Gasol along with Gibson is a great front to have and they will be much better overall than the Bulls were with Boozer in for Gasol last season.
Boozer was overpriced here and there was no choice but to get rid of him through the amnesty clause and now the team has the chance to really get something going if Rose stays healthy. McDermott can help with the subpar three point shooting and many think that Mirotic has a high upside. Both Mirotic and McDermott have extensive experience for rookie players and that should come in handy this season. The division is not as scary now with Paul George's injury for the Pacers, but the team still will have to deal with LeBron James this season as well.
The Bulls ranked first overall in defense by points per game last season and they will be looking to do that again, but what they really need to improve is scoring. The team went hard after Carmelo Anthony to help with that and while they missed on him, the addition of Gasol should help greatly on the offensive end. Gasol is a better offensive player than Boozer was and he could be the difference for the team this season as long as Rose remains healthy.
The Bulls signed Aaron Brooks to help with Rose and his minutes and he can be a solid option off the bench to help spell Rose at times. Last season while playing with the Rockets and Nuggets he averaged 9.0 points and 3.2 assists and he should be a better option than DJ Augustin was last season. The Bulls have a deep and talented roster and names like Jimmy Butler and Tony Snell could have bigger roles this season with Rose back.