Chicago Bulls Could Win Central Without Carlos Boozer

cj watson is a solid backup for rose and one i have my eye on this year...they could make a dynamic tandem when playing together on the floor...i also liked the play of kyle

weaver although with all the guards we have now it could be difficult for him to make the roster...even james johnson has shown promise over the last 2 preseason games...the

bulls appear to be running a flex-style offense and ball movement has been very good...boozer will be paramount though to really make the offense come alive i think...

I keep telling myself not to get excited. It's just the preseason. It's just the Washington Wizards and Toronto Raptors. Those are teams the Chicago Bulls are supposed to beat.

Yet I can't help but marvel at the depth and versatility of this Bulls team and ask myself: Just how good is this team without Carlos Boozer? How far could Chicago go if their

second option never played this season?

Good enough to beat out the Milwaukee Bucks and Indiana Pacers for the Central Division crown? Definitely.

Good enough to beat the Miami Heat, Orlando Magic or Boston Celtics for the Eastern Conference title? No chance.

Don't get me wrong—I want Boozer back as much as anyone. Replacing 20 points and 10 rebounds per game is a tall order for any squad.

This is not a knock on Boozer, but rather a testament to the quality of the group Gar Forman and John Paxson built this offseason. Only the truly elite teams could lose one of

their stars and still play at a near-equal level. The Bulls are doing just that.

Against the Raptors, Derrick Rose had a solid showing with 23 points, five rebounds and seven assists. Joakim Noah nearly finished with a triple-double, as he had 16 points, 14

rebounds, eight assists and a whopping +23 in the plus-minus column.

Yet what goes unnoticed is C.J. Watson dropping 12 points in 19 minutes and shooting 5-for-7 from the field, including 2-for-2 on treys.

And then there's Omer Asik, who scored nine points and grabbed eight rebounds in 20 minutes of action. The game before that against the Wizards he notched nine points and 10

rebounds.

These two guys are not starters. They're not the sixth or seventh men. But when they're asked to contribute, they're up for the task.

These two preseason wins improved the Bulls' record to 2-2, but more importantly reassured the players, management and fans that even in the absence of their prime offseason

acquisition, the Bulls will be fine. They'll struggle against the elite teams in the West, but they would with Boozer in the lineup anyway.

I wrote in an earlier article that I can't see the Bulls coming out of November with a record better than .500. While I still believe that will be the case, I'd be less

surprised if Chicago scores some major upset victories.

Blame my previous pessimism on my Murphy's Law mentality when it comes to Chicago sports.

The Bulls may have a new coach and several new players, but one attribute of the previous squads is still with this team: resiliency.

And as long as Chicago has that fighting spirit, I like the Bulls' chances. With or without Boozer in the lineup.



On the other hand,I say that because there seems to be this perception that the Miami Heat and Orlando are more talented than the Chicago Bulls. With Miami that is only the case

if you look at their top three players, after that the entire rest of the team does not compare favorably to the Bulls. That is more significant than people realize. The Bulls

team of the 1990’s could not win a championship until they had a talented bench. Looking at the Heat’s bench play against New Orleans recently should be a red flag. They

struggled to score 30 points in the first half of the game…and New Orleans is not exactly a “defensive power” in the league. Orlando probably is as talented as the Bulls, but

they have no perimeter defense. A team that can excel at shooting from the perimeter as the Bulls are showing they have (and to a greater extent than I thought) can beat

Orlando. The Magic allowed their best perimeter defender in Matt Barnes to walk away, so I don’t believe they are even as good as they were last year. While I think the Bulls

will do very well without Boozer, I hope to goodness we do not have to find out. Boston is a team that is more talented than the Bulls (even with Boozer) and still seems to have

a really tough defense. They are the team I fear the most. The Bulls will have to win using their quickness and athleticism and whether Boozer is playing or not, I think it will

be a long and rough haul for the Bulls.