Things that aren’t good: losing to the Knicks at home

And just when you thought the Bulls were going to turn the ship around, they get outscored 27-12 in the fourth quarter and lose to the Knicks. Is anyone else starting to get the feeling that the Bulls will be stuck in this funk all season?

Usually when facing this type of situation, the best bet is to shorten the rotation and give veterans the big minutes. New coach Jim Boylan seemed like he tried to do that, but it just isn’t working. On paper, this rotation would seem to give the Bulls there best chance to start winning consistently (assuming everyone is healthy):

C Wallace
PF Smith
SF Deng
SG Hinrich
PG Duhon
Bench 1: Gordon
Bench 2: Nocioni
Bench 3: Thomas/Noah/Gray

Obviously any starting lineup that includes Hinrich at shooting guard and features Big Ben and Duhon is going to be flawed, but common NBA logic infers this would be the way to go. Unfortunately for the Bulls, the veterans don’t look like they are capable winning games right now, so the Bulls best bet is to go young.

Noah, Thomas, and Gray have all played exceptional games recently and could be key in sparking a turnaround. With Deng injured and Nocioni sick, now is a perfect time to see what the kids can do in extended action. With four consecutive road games coming up against mediocre Eastern Conference teams, the Bulls three young big men may as well get their chance.

If giving these three players big minutes is Option C for the Bulls, it appears going with them is a better plan then Option B which is let Gordon fire a jumper every time he touches the ball and pray that he’s on. The only way the Bulls have been competitive the last two games is because Joe Smith has turned into Moses Malone- approximately Option G4- and that surely will not continue. The Bulls should try trotting out this rotation for the road trip:

C Gray
PF Noah
SF Deng
SG Nocioni
PG Hinrich
Bench 1:Gordon
Bench 2: Thomas
Bench 3: Wallace
Bench 4: Smith

They might as well ride Smith when he’s hot, but he begins to come back down to Earth, this seems like a logical plan. Surely Wallace will hate it, but there is a lot to like about this rotation.

First, it makes the Bulls look like more of a real basketball team. Hinrich belongs no where but running the point, and it could help straighten out his shooting now that he won’t have to defend such bigger and more skilled guards. Nocioni obviously isn’t a classic fit at shooting guard, but he fires threes at will and doesn’t rebound particularly well. He won’t be great on defense, but he’s 6’7 so that will help at least a little. Gray and Noah compliment each other well in the same way Curry and Chandler did, and it’s actually an apt comparison. Noah has truly been impressive when he’s on the floor, and no matter how much a doubt Gray, he has proven he can score in small spurts thus far in the NBA.

Will Jim Boylan go to this rotation? Probably not. Yet, if this doesn’t work, I might be out of answers. Back to Gordon taking 30 shots a night, I suppose.