Really, I was going to suggest this before Saturday night’s debacle — the blowout, bench-clearing home loss to an average Toronto Raptors team playing the second of a back-to-back set on the road.
It’s time for a major change with the Bulls.
No, not a regime change. As we know, that’s problematic.
And not a player change, even as the restless paying folks at the United Center chant for Kobe Bryant. There will be plenty of that when the Bulls visit the Lakers on Sunday. There have been exactly zero discussions between the Bulls and Lakers — or Bulls and anyone, for that matter, league insiders say — since the season started.
(By the way, Bryant would lead the Bulls in scoring, rebounding and steals and would be second in assists and third in blocks. Get serious. It would take a lot more than the Bulls’ current roster — which is without an All-Star and with two players who have already turned down eight-figure extension offers, thus proving themselves difficult to sign — to acquire Bryant.)
It’s time for major lineup changes and perhaps an attitude adjustment.
What has struck me the most is this is a team that has grown too comfortable. Not confident, mind you, as I don’t think they believe they’ve accomplished anything.
But the principal core of the Bulls has in effect been unchallenged for three years. Starting jobs are all but assured. There’s little competition, less fear of failure and embarrassment and a sense of entitlement.
Not to blame anyone in particular, because they are all at fault, and blame Ben Wallace less for his disinterested play than his disinterest in becoming a captain. Four players — Kirk Hinrich, Ben Gordon, Chris Duhon and Luol Deng — applied for the captaincy. Hinrich and Deng were voted on by the team. The team also voted on whether Wallace could wear his headband. Perhaps they should OK it only if he rebounds.
But it was most disturbing on a team known to be without vocal leadership that the only true successful veteran and All-Star declined to even be nominated for the position.
Ah, but I digress. Here’s how I would set the lineup:
*Sit Gordon. Gordon is a sixth man. It’s time to forget this fiction that Gordon can run the team. He’s potentially a great sixth man. It’s no embarrassment. John Havlicek, Kevin McHale and Billy Cunningham were sixth men. You do what you can to help the team.
*Make Deng the shooting guard. The Bulls hoped Thabo Sefolosha would move more into that role this season, but he’s clearly not ready and not clicking with coach Scott Skiles.
Teams are finding out about Deng. He grew the last few seasons mostly under the radar. Lu Who? And then he supposedly can’t be traded for Bryant. That opened some eyes around the NBA, such as those of Charles Barkley on TNT, who kept joking, “Why not?” about Deng in a deal for Bryant.
Opponents take notice. You’re as good as Kobe? OK, we’ll see.
Richard Jefferson and Andre Iguodala manhandled Deng last week. Saturday night, Toronto started 27-year-old journeyman rookie Jamario Moon, and Deng had five points on 2-of-8 shooting. Moon is athletic, which has been the strategy against Deng.
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*Hinrich at the point. Put Deng in the backcourt with Hinrich and forget this nonsense of Hinrich having to defend all the big guards. Have Hinrich chase point guards and occasionally a running shooting guard like Richard Hamilton.
For instance, Deng is a better matchup against the Suns’ Raja Bell this week. He gives the Bulls more size and better defense in the backcourt. Then Deng can post up some shooting guards and make teams match to you. That’s the NBA game. He’s smart enough and good enough to adjust quickly.
*Nocioni at small forward. Then put Andres Nocioni and his annoying traits (in a good way) back at small forward. Yes, he’s slower and still misses most defensive assignments. But the high jumpers hate playing against him, his physical presence and his flopping. He frustrates even LeBron James. He can make a shot and never is not trying. That’s leadership.
*Joe Smith at power forward. Start Joe Smith for a veteran presence who can make a shot to complement Wallace. Teams don’t guard Wallace or Tyrus Thomas, neither of whom can shoot much. Perimeter players are the defense’s focus, making shooting more difficult.
*Wallace at center. Wallace looks like a leader. He isn’t. The Pistons let him pretend to be to get more out of him. Wallace will try. He just doesn’t deal well with the pressure. Sure, sure, you’re supposed to for all that money. Forget that. It made sense at the time to acquire Wallace. Everyone around the NBA thought it was a terrific move. The Bulls have to make the best of it.
*Bring Thomas off the bench. He’s shown impressive flashes with big games against the 76ers and Pistons. He can play, just not always with the spotlight on him. OK, maybe the Bulls should have taken the bigger LaMarcus Aldridge. But on the whole, the draft picks have built the team and have been terrific. Thomas was a reasonable risk who still can work out. Make him a reserve with Gordon, who’ll spread the court for Thomas to work inside while Thomas gives Gordon more shooting space.
The strength of this Bulls team was supposed to be not only hustle and hard work, but also depth, that second wave of players who come in and overwhelm the opposition’s lesser reserves. With Gordon and Thomas on the bench, the Bulls can do that. It doesn’t matter whether the starters or reserves outscore the opponents. They only count the final total.
Happy days
The Bulls head into Phoenix on Thursday night with Shawn Marion happy and coming off a game of 17 points, 24 rebounds and five steals against Miami. He’s averaging 16.4 points and 12.9 rebounds and not going anywhere.
Likewise, Andrei Kirilenko seems to love Salt Lake City, with near-triple-doubles the last two home games. In all he’s averaging 10.9 points, 7.0 rebounds, 6.4 assists and 2.4 blocks in seven games. “AK’s had a great attitude,” Carlos Boozer said. “He’s been working hard. He’s been doing everything. It seems like he’s everywhere on the court. He’s playing terrific.”
Unhappy days
Not playing so great is Pau Gasol, who is said to be muttering a lot in Spanish to new teammate Juan Carlos Navarro. Gasol is averaging 16.2 points and a soft 6.2 rebounds after consecutive four-rebound games and scoreless second halves. He took just one shot in the second half of each of those games, both losses. He has been on the Bulls’ radar for a year since asking out, though he hardly seems worth giving up as much as Memphis would want for him.
Border patrol
Though the Raptors looked awfully good against the Bulls on Saturday — who wouldn’t? — you get the feeling it isn’t going to work. Coach Sam Mitchell, an original old-schooler, noted how Boston beat the Raptors on a screen play in which Ray Allen did some furtive holding. Mitchell told a story about Terry Porter punching Karl Malone in the groin out of the referee’s view when Malone was setting similarly disguised illegal picks. Malone’s elbows didn’t leave his sensitive area to set screens after that.
“The thing we talked to all our guys about — if you’re going to grab me, there’s some things that I can do,” Mitchell told Toronto reporters. “The officials do a great job, but they’re not going to see everything. So you’ve got to learn how to protect yourself.”
You figure the league loved hearing that. But with three losses last week before winning two straight at the Sixers and Bulls, Mitchell benched Andrea Bargnani for Rasho Nesterovic. Fine, he’s a half-court defensive coach. But general manager Bryan Colangelo, formerly of the Suns and a proponent of the European open court style of play, keeps giving Mitchell finesse shooters with speed.
Heated in Miami
Who’s surprised at this? Shaquille O’Neal has been glaring a lot at Ricky Davis, who is averaging more shots per game than O’Neal. Davis also is averaging nearly as many rebounds, 6.4 to O’Neal’s 7.2.
Coach Pat Riley says he does regret letting free agent Jason Kapono go to Toronto and not urging Dwyane Wade to have season-ending surgery last February as Wade remains out.
And the South Florida Sun-Sentinel reported that the latest divorce petition by O’Neal’s wife requested detailed financial documents from her husband, including income-tax returns, O’Neal’s Heat player contract and expense receipts, including gas receipts, grooming receipts, dry-cleaning receipts and “psychiatric/psychological/counselor” receipts. Thought the worst thing I’d read in recent NBA divorce filings was an allegation against Jason Kidd’s wife that she painted his golf clubs.
Open houses
Blind fan loyalty seems over in the NBA. The Pacers drew 10,122 last week against the Clippers, an all-time low for Conseco Fieldhouse, which suggests even good teams need more than nice buildings. The 76ers drew 9,317 against Charlotte, with the lower bowl routinely half-empty. The Kings’ sellout streak of 354 games ended on opening night. And New Orleans is at the bottom of the league in average attendance.
Tip-ins
Warriors coach Don Nelson said he was going to bench players for not making free throws because all it requires is practice. With everyone on the team but Kelenna Azubuike under 70 percent, Nelson acknowledged: “I was lying to you. What, am I going to take Baron (Davis) out? Those guys know that I’m just saying stuff. You don’t make your free throws, you’re not going to play. That’s for the 12th and the 10th guy.” … Nets starting center Jason Collins went 10 straight games — the last seven of last season and the first three this season — without scoring, a total of 240 minutes. “I was half expecting them to stop the game, give me the game ball, have some balloons and streamers ready for me,” Collins said. … The Clippers have been an early surprise thanks to Chris Kaman, averaging 18.4 points and 14.6 rebounds. If Elton Brand does return, they may again have something going, and Brand may choose not to opt out. … It’s been quite the comedown for Antoine Walker, who is averaging 3.5 points in 12.8 minutes for the winless Timberwolves.
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