The Chicago Bulls made improving the offense a priority during the offseason. They traded to get Doug McDermott in the draft. They also made a push to pry Carmelo Anthony from the New York Knicks. They were, of course, unsuccessful in obtaining Anthony, but they did perhaps the next-best thing — they picked up forward/center Pau Gasol.
Gasol spent the last seven years playing in La La Land, for the Los Angeles Lakers. He won two championships playing alongside Kobe Bryant. He scored 7,610 points and collected 4,240 rebounds while in Los Angeles.
Now the 13-year veteran moves over to the Eastern Conference, where he will go against LeBron James and the new-look Cleveland Cavaliers.
Some question whether Gasol has much left in the tank to cause much damage in a Bulls uniform. He seemed revitalized, however, playing in the FIBA World Cup the past few weeks, showing there is something left there, and whatever is there he is going to try to maximize it.
The signing of Gasol brought excitement to most Bulls fans. He and the other pickups add options to an offense that ranked dead last in scoring last season.
With Gasol, the Bulls have an offense that, along with their top-ranked defense, make them a legitimate title contender.
Gasol gives the Bulls a championship pedigree.
Gasol is a champion. He knows what it takes to go through the grind of a season, both regular and playoff.
Gasol has gone through the woods and navigated around them and came out in the end.
Yes, coach Tom Thibodeau also has experience winning a championship, but he is a coach. It is good to know that he knows the X’s and O’s, but writing something on a board is a lot different from actually getting on the court and getting it done.
There is no one on the Bulls roster that has championship experience. Noah won two championships while at Florida and Derrick Rose went to the title game while at Memphis, but that was in college. This is the pros now.
There are still some players on the roster that were there in the 2011 Eastern Conference Finals loss to the Miami Heat, and I am sure that left them with a sour taste. Well, Gasol can help them change that taste to that of champagne.
You can ask James how having experience helps in winning. He had all the ability in the world, but he had to experience two Finals failures before finally winning. Once he did win it all, he did it again the next season, and almost did it again this season.
Gasol can play alongside a superstar.
Gasol has played the last seven seasons with Kobe Bryant, a future Hall-of-Famer and one of the greatest players of all-time. It hasn’t always been fun for him, as Bryant is also one of the most irascible players.
Gasol took the brunt of Bryant’s tantrums on the court. He has the temperament to deal with that, however. Not many players can take the abuse a superstar like Bryant can dish. Gasol took it, and he thrived, for the most part.
Now, it is important to understand that Gasol won’t got through that playing with Rose. Rose is not demonstrative when it comes to his emotions. Some teammates have spoken about his intensity, however, so he does have a little bit of that superstar emotion.
Gasol’s experience with Bryant could actually help Rose. Gasol can point out some things that Bryant does that makes him so good, and have Rose do them and improve himself. Gasol can take all the good of playing with Bryant and teach, without dealing with the bad experience with Rose.
Gasol’s personality can also rub off well on Noah. Noah is an emotional player, and at times it can get the better of him, whether it’s arguing with Thibodeau or yelling at officials. Gasol’s calming influence will help Noah tremendously.
Pau Gasol and Joakim Noah together give the Bulls a great post game.
The Bulls’ offense was a grind last season. They were considered the hardest working team in the NBA, and it showed offensively. Every possession was a battle to score.
A big reason for that is that the Bulls have no real post game. Having a post game opens up other shots for the team, and gives you some easy shots, so you do not have to depend on outside shots so much for points.
From inside 5-feet, the Bulls ranked 28th in the league. From 5-to-9 feet, they are dead last. That really hurt their offensive continuity. When the shooters get the ball from the post, defenders are all over them, not respecting the Bulls enough to put it back in the post and score. The more contested shots taken, the worse the shooting percentage.
With Gasol, the Bulls have another option in the post other than Noah. Gasol is a proven post scorer so opposing teams have to respect that. If they double up on Gasol, Noah is open for easy shots. The more they score in the post, the more open shots the shooters get. The more open shots, the better the shooting percentage.
In Noah and Gasol, the Bulls also have two of the best post passers (or any type of passers) in the NBA. Noah averaged 5.4 assists per game last season, while Gasol averaged 3.4. These are great numbers for big men. When they are doubled, they have the ability to pick up the open man right away and get the ball to that man.
Improving the post game will add much-needed points in the Bulls offense, and that will be great, considering how few points they give up on defense.
Gasol’s outside shooting will help spread the opposition.
Gasol is a career 51 percent shooter. From the mid-range, he is shooting 45 percent. Having a big guy that can shoot is incredibly helpful to an offense.
Gasol can bring the opposing big man out with his shooting. He can either fake the shot then drive past the big man, or he can take the shot. Even if he does not make the shot, having a big out on the perimeter means he is not under the basket getting rebounds. Ask the Heat how successful that was for them. Bosh took the big men out, and even though the Heat lacked real big men, when it was time to get crucial rebounds, a Heat player was there grabbing it. That’s why 85-year-old Udonis Haslem is still playing, and playing some at center. The Heat went to four consecutive Finals and won two of them without any effective big men.
Having Gasol in the perimeter also helps Rose and his drives. The opposition will not be able to crash down on his drives like they used to. They have to be aware that the Bulls have Gasol, among others, who can shoot. The defense gets spread out and Rose will not have to deal with as many trees on the way to the basket. I am sure Rose appreciates that.
Gasol can play some defense, too.
Coach Thibodeau really loves defense. I mean, really, REALLY loves defense. He gets upset when players in an All Star game don’t play defense. He demands his players play at least adequate defense. He is the only coach that got Nate Robinson to play defense on a regular basis.
Gasol can make Thibodeau happy. He can play and succeed in the team defense scheme that is demanded. He averages 9.6 rebounds per game and 1.6 blocks per game in his career.
Gasol’s defensive rebound percentage (estimate of the percentage of available defensive rebounds a player gets while on the floor) was 25.9 percent last season (and a career average of 20.5 percent). By comparison, Noah’s defensive rebound percentage last season was 24.5 percent, and he has a career average of 22.9 percent. That is a lot of defensive rebounds coming just from two players, and that’s not including Taj Gibson.
Thibodeau’s defensive scheme is predicated on protecting the middle of the floor, where most of the points are scored. The Bulls force teams to take tougher shots than normal. Playing against this defense is very difficult. Teams going up against the Bulls are usually frustrated because they end up missing a lot of shots.
Having Gasol on the floor with Noah, those missed shots will get to one of their hands, and a lot of outlet passes will occur, giving the Bulls a lot of easier shots. As I said, easier shots lead to a higher field goal percentage which leads to more points, something the Bulls desperately need. Gasol’s defense will help the Bulls’ offense score those points.
Gasol’s signing may be one of the best free agent signings when it’s all said and done. He is on a quest for another title, and with the Bulls he just may get it.
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