The Bulls can go ahead and check off all those offseason boxes.
Locked in coach Jim Boylen for the next few seasons – check.
Improved the bench – check.
Added toughness to the roster – check.
Dealt with existing injuries, and a few new ones – check.
Made sure the players and coaching staff were on the same page – check.
Now, it’s enough talk.
With Monday’s media day kicking off the start of training camp, all the fancy quotes about expectations and improvement are simply window dressing. Yes, Year 3 of this rebuild is supposed to be better than the 22 wins put on the shelf last season. Of course the pressure is on Lauri Markkanen and Zach LaVine to take further steps toward stardom.
But this camp is about actions. Words have run their course.
Here are the five biggest storylines leading up to the Oct. 23 tip-off to the regular season:
1. Making a point – All eyes will be on the point guard battle, as Tomas Satoransky, Kris Dunn, and rookie Coby White will all be thrown in the ring together. A loser leaves town match? Maybe for Dunn, who the Bulls have been in and out of shopping throughout the offseason.
If Satoransky does what he did during the FIBA World Cup last month, Dunn will likely be spending his playing time with the second unit.
Not the only layer in this point guard intrigue, either.
The organization will also be keeping a close eye on the league, and if another team suffers an injury at their point guard spot. That scenario could further the Dunn talks.
Then there’s the battle for point guard depth.
With or without Dunn, White will see some playing time at that position. So where does Ryan Arcidiacono fit into this?
That all has to be ironed out in the next three-plus weeks.
2. The White album – The Bulls didn’t waste pick No. 7 on White to get him 10-12 minutes a game. Ideally, it’s about that 18-20 minute mark, working at both guard spots.
White will have a say in that, however, by first showing that he is capable of making the transition to being an NBA point guard, and secondly showing that his poor three-point shooting in Summer League was more aberration than reality.
His athleticism has never been questioned, and with Boylen wanting to run more this season, it has to be embraced. Camp will show the coaching staff just how much – and where – they can use White.
3. Mr. Carter – Having surgery to repair a core injury this summer didn’t exactly help Wendell Carter Jr. start the offseason on an uptick. He’s expected to be full-go this week, but the second-year center is still more potential than proven commodity.
And with the Bulls bulking up Markkanen to play in the post, where will that leave Carter late in games? Boylen has talked about using Markkanen at the five, especially late in games if they go small, so does Carter become Carlos Boozer in the final eight minutes of games, waving a towel from the bench?
4. The new guys – Otto Porter Jr. has already emerged as a solid buffer between the locker room and the demands of Boylen, and free-agent forward Thaddeus Young has also been preaching the acceptance of those duties.
Boylen wants a hard-nosed style of play on a nightly basis, and now has at least two players that can help make sure that doesn’t get lost in translation.
5. Valentine’s day – Denzel Valentine (foot surgery) is not expected to be ready for full basketball activity this week. The former first-round pick needs to be on the floor as soon as possible, however, with the organization figuring out if he is in their future plans.
There is growing momentum that he was simply a system player at Michigan State, and Valentine needs to change that quickly.
