Watson is headed to New Jersey, and it appears as though John Lucas III is close to a deal with the Raptors.
What does this mean to Mat?
We'll be seeing a lot of these guys in the coming years.
Both will fill in backup roles for their respective teams in the Eastern Conference, and both will likely be gunning for the Bulls each and every time they visit.
Mat was impressed with the professionalism both showed when they exited, but he knows deep down both guys would have loved to stay, and both were irked a little bit by the Teague pick.
Mat hates when players have vendettas against the Bulls. All these guys are professional athletes, and are incredibly talented, but when you give them a little more to play for, they can become really dangerous.
Both guys will earn a standing O from Mat when they each return, but from then on, Mat hopes the Bulls are able to bottle them up like the Sixers did last May.
Showing posts with label Marquis Teague. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Marquis Teague. Show all posts
Wednesday, July 18, 2012
Tuesday, July 10, 2012
It's Summer League Time
Bryan Crawford of NBC Chicago passes along information regarding the Bulls upcoming NBA Summer League venture, which will be taking place in Las Vegas. You may remember last season this was cancelled because of the lockout, but this is an otherwise annual occurrence in the NBA offseason.
The roster breaks down like this:
Jimmy Butler, Marquis Teague, Demetri McCamey, Leon Powe, and a bunch of random clowns whose names can be found within the article. For those unfamiliar, the NBA Summer League is less a time for compeition, but more a time for players to showcase their talents to the NBA execs/scouts who are watching on.
Mat likes this for various reasons. Partially because he gets to lounge around, eating cheese while watching mediocre basketball. But mostly because he gets his Bulls fix. He is very interested in seeing Marquis Teague donning the black and red for the first time and witnessing his perceived first round skills.
Mat expects Jimmy Butler to dominate over the course of the 4 games the Bulls are playing (July 17th vs. Celtics, 18th vs. Rockets, 20th vs. Warriors, and 21st vs. Clippers) as Butler's role is expected to be heavily increased this upcoming season because of the departure of Ronnie Brewer.
Also included in this bunch is former Celtics second round pick, Leon Powe. Powe has had numerous knee issues in the past, but has been known to explode in previous NBA games. Mat is interested to see what this 4 year NBA vet has left in the tank.
Last, and certainly least, Mat wants to see what Demetri McCamey has left. Purely because of the fact that Mat believes McCamey to be the biggest waste of basketball talent this side of Kwame Brown. Mat remembers fondly hearing of his fantastic performances while playing at the University of Illinois, only to be undone by his reputation to be lazy and unable to be coached.
Mat doesn't expect much out of the latter two, but knows big things should come out of the first two mentioned. Hopefully the basketball is bearable, and the Bulls front office learns a little bit more about their team before the season starts up.
The roster breaks down like this:
Jimmy Butler, Marquis Teague, Demetri McCamey, Leon Powe, and a bunch of random clowns whose names can be found within the article. For those unfamiliar, the NBA Summer League is less a time for compeition, but more a time for players to showcase their talents to the NBA execs/scouts who are watching on.
Mat likes this for various reasons. Partially because he gets to lounge around, eating cheese while watching mediocre basketball. But mostly because he gets his Bulls fix. He is very interested in seeing Marquis Teague donning the black and red for the first time and witnessing his perceived first round skills.
Mat expects Jimmy Butler to dominate over the course of the 4 games the Bulls are playing (July 17th vs. Celtics, 18th vs. Rockets, 20th vs. Warriors, and 21st vs. Clippers) as Butler's role is expected to be heavily increased this upcoming season because of the departure of Ronnie Brewer.
Also included in this bunch is former Celtics second round pick, Leon Powe. Powe has had numerous knee issues in the past, but has been known to explode in previous NBA games. Mat is interested to see what this 4 year NBA vet has left in the tank.
Last, and certainly least, Mat wants to see what Demetri McCamey has left. Purely because of the fact that Mat believes McCamey to be the biggest waste of basketball talent this side of Kwame Brown. Mat remembers fondly hearing of his fantastic performances while playing at the University of Illinois, only to be undone by his reputation to be lazy and unable to be coached.
Mat doesn't expect much out of the latter two, but knows big things should come out of the first two mentioned. Hopefully the basketball is bearable, and the Bulls front office learns a little bit more about their team before the season starts up.
Monday, July 9, 2012
Bye Bye To The Bench Mob
Mat's thoughts recently have been filled with retrospect and nostalgia regarding his beloved, "Bench Mob." Although, the majority of Bulls fans have known for a while this offseason would introduce much change to the bench at the Madhouse, the closer the change comes to reality, the harder it is for Mat to come to grips with the loss.
Salary constraints are to be blamed in this situation in addition to a few other reasons. With the drafting of Teague and reintroduction of Hinrich to the franchise, C.J. Watson and John Lucas III are going to be left searching for a new franchise. Ronnie Brewer is also said to be gone, with Mat seeing a silver lining in Jimmy Butler gobbling up the majority of his minutes.
Kyle Korver is the player who leaves the most to be questioned. While nothing is certain for any of the previously mentioned Bench Mob, the Bulls seem to be waiting till the last second to make a decision on Korver's $5 million option.
Mat doesn't see him staying either. $5 million is a lot for a one dimensional player; keeping in mind the salary cap shadow that is hovering the franchise as it is.
While Mat is definitely sad seeing some of these key role players go, he is also excited to see what GarPax are made of. He knows you won't see any big moves out of the Bulls this offseason, but sometimes the minor moves are the ones that win you championships.
The pressure is on GarPax to rebuild this new Bench Mob with talent. Hopefully surrounding the Bulls core with enough of it to take them to the promise land.
Salary constraints are to be blamed in this situation in addition to a few other reasons. With the drafting of Teague and reintroduction of Hinrich to the franchise, C.J. Watson and John Lucas III are going to be left searching for a new franchise. Ronnie Brewer is also said to be gone, with Mat seeing a silver lining in Jimmy Butler gobbling up the majority of his minutes.
Kyle Korver is the player who leaves the most to be questioned. While nothing is certain for any of the previously mentioned Bench Mob, the Bulls seem to be waiting till the last second to make a decision on Korver's $5 million option.
Mat doesn't see him staying either. $5 million is a lot for a one dimensional player; keeping in mind the salary cap shadow that is hovering the franchise as it is.
While Mat is definitely sad seeing some of these key role players go, he is also excited to see what GarPax are made of. He knows you won't see any big moves out of the Bulls this offseason, but sometimes the minor moves are the ones that win you championships.
The pressure is on GarPax to rebuild this new Bench Mob with talent. Hopefully surrounding the Bulls core with enough of it to take them to the promise land.
Safe Not Sorry
It seemed to make sense to most, and now we know that it made sense to Gar and Pax, Kirk Hinrich will be back in the Bulls back court. Well, sources say.
Mat sees this as the safe move. Smart move, but also safe and somewhat easy.
Kirk is a pro, and he has Mat's trust. He's not going to wow anybody, but he's also not going to make some of the mistakes we saw from C.J. and JL3 while either one of them was running the show.
Hinrich will work hard every day and be an excellent role model to Teague and even Rose.
He'll be able to fill in for Derrick for the time being, and then when Rose does return, Kirk will be a fine fill in when D-Rose needs a breather.
Defensively Hinrich is an upgrade over anything the Bulls have thrown out there since, well, Kirk Hinrich.
Mat just needs to find a way to flush out the memories of Kirk on bad Bulls teams, and see him as an added piece to an already good Bulls team. This will take time.
Mat likes the move. Even if it does seem somewhat obvious and safe.
Mat sees this as the safe move. Smart move, but also safe and somewhat easy.
Kirk is a pro, and he has Mat's trust. He's not going to wow anybody, but he's also not going to make some of the mistakes we saw from C.J. and JL3 while either one of them was running the show.
Hinrich will work hard every day and be an excellent role model to Teague and even Rose.
He'll be able to fill in for Derrick for the time being, and then when Rose does return, Kirk will be a fine fill in when D-Rose needs a breather.
Defensively Hinrich is an upgrade over anything the Bulls have thrown out there since, well, Kirk Hinrich.
Mat just needs to find a way to flush out the memories of Kirk on bad Bulls teams, and see him as an added piece to an already good Bulls team. This will take time.
Mat likes the move. Even if it does seem somewhat obvious and safe.
Tuesday, July 3, 2012
Perfect Fish
The Bulls have apparently now set their sites on former Laker and Thunder PG Derek Fisher.
Mat knows that free agency has a lot sexier topics than back-up point guard, but here in Chicago, it's this and the Omer saga.
So since we are stuck in our own world of free agency, our excitement levels are allowed to match the magnitude of the signing.
In other words, Mat would be amped if Derrick Fisher does indeed wear red and black next season.
Fisher could step in right away as the starter, giving the Bulls some security until Rose comes back and also allowing them to take it slow with the new 19 year old Bull, Marquis Teague.
Fisher would also be a perfect fit when Derrick is ready to come back. Both to play along side him as well as in a backup role.
Fisher would bring a high level of playoff experience along with his insane ability to hit every clutch shot he ever takes. Ok, Mat may have overblown that skill a little, but it's certainly better than Scal taking the final shot.
The price seems to be right. The player is certainly right. Mat's got his fingers crossed. Make it happen Gar.
Mat knows that free agency has a lot sexier topics than back-up point guard, but here in Chicago, it's this and the Omer saga.
So since we are stuck in our own world of free agency, our excitement levels are allowed to match the magnitude of the signing.
In other words, Mat would be amped if Derrick Fisher does indeed wear red and black next season.
Fisher could step in right away as the starter, giving the Bulls some security until Rose comes back and also allowing them to take it slow with the new 19 year old Bull, Marquis Teague.
Fisher would also be a perfect fit when Derrick is ready to come back. Both to play along side him as well as in a backup role.
Fisher would bring a high level of playoff experience along with his insane ability to hit every clutch shot he ever takes. Ok, Mat may have overblown that skill a little, but it's certainly better than Scal taking the final shot.
The price seems to be right. The player is certainly right. Mat's got his fingers crossed. Make it happen Gar.
Sunday, July 1, 2012
Losing Omer Would Hurt
Reports indicate that the Rockets and possibly Blazers or Timberwolves are going to offer Omer heavily backloaded deals in order to woo him away from the Bulls.
As Mat noted before, being a second round pick, no team can offer him more than $5 million for the first two years of a new contract.
This means that the teams pursing him, in a ploy to bring something special to the table, would likely offer Omer deals that would pay him up to $8 million in the final two years of a four year deal.
Mat knows $8 million is a lot for a backup center. But he also knows what Omer is becoming, and might eventually turn into.
What Omer is right now is a dominant defense center. He's proven that he can shut down basically anyone (including #6 and that Wade guy) who brings the ball hard to the rack.
But where he struggles is on the other end. His hands are suspect, which makes for his ability to catch (this is where the hands come in) and score to be limited.
Mat wants to remind the masses, Gar, and Pax, that Omer has only been through one NBA training camp, which was before he had ever played a game in the league. His ability to learn during the offseason is far greater than it is during a shortened 66 game season which allowed room for very few practices. Without a lockout this year, Omer will be able to go through a true offseason, and his offensive game should get better.
Where Mat sees the big loss in Omer departing is that finding a replacement will not be easy. There are some older players out there, but none with the same skill set as Omer. The Bulls have somewhat of a young core. Rose 23, Deng 27, Noah 27, Gibson 27, and Teague 19. And Omer is only 25.
Keeping this young core will not only allow the Bulls to grow as a team, which they have already been doing, but it also will allow them to keep a nucleus, and fit auxiliary pieces in around them. Mat loves the idea of two good big men on the same roster for years to come. That's why he thinks losing Omer would hurt both now, but also in the future.
Big guys don't grow on trees and young ones are incredibly difficult to get your hands on. The Bulls have two of them, they shouldn't let some desperate team take one away.
As Mat noted before, being a second round pick, no team can offer him more than $5 million for the first two years of a new contract.
This means that the teams pursing him, in a ploy to bring something special to the table, would likely offer Omer deals that would pay him up to $8 million in the final two years of a four year deal.
Mat knows $8 million is a lot for a backup center. But he also knows what Omer is becoming, and might eventually turn into.
What Omer is right now is a dominant defense center. He's proven that he can shut down basically anyone (including #6 and that Wade guy) who brings the ball hard to the rack.
But where he struggles is on the other end. His hands are suspect, which makes for his ability to catch (this is where the hands come in) and score to be limited.
Mat wants to remind the masses, Gar, and Pax, that Omer has only been through one NBA training camp, which was before he had ever played a game in the league. His ability to learn during the offseason is far greater than it is during a shortened 66 game season which allowed room for very few practices. Without a lockout this year, Omer will be able to go through a true offseason, and his offensive game should get better.
Where Mat sees the big loss in Omer departing is that finding a replacement will not be easy. There are some older players out there, but none with the same skill set as Omer. The Bulls have somewhat of a young core. Rose 23, Deng 27, Noah 27, Gibson 27, and Teague 19. And Omer is only 25.
Keeping this young core will not only allow the Bulls to grow as a team, which they have already been doing, but it also will allow them to keep a nucleus, and fit auxiliary pieces in around them. Mat loves the idea of two good big men on the same roster for years to come. That's why he thinks losing Omer would hurt both now, but also in the future.
Big guys don't grow on trees and young ones are incredibly difficult to get your hands on. The Bulls have two of them, they shouldn't let some desperate team take one away.
Friday, June 29, 2012
Dissecting Marquis Teague
With the 29th pick of the 2012 NBA Draft the Chicago Bulls selected Marquis Teague point guard out of the University of Kentucky. Mat was hearing plenty of rumors of Tyshawn Taylor and various amounts of small forward prospects, but the drafting of Teague caught this mouse by surprise.
Previous to the pick, Mat was very vocal in his displeasure with the possibility of his Bulls drafting a backup point guard to bridge the gap while Rose was out. He would have much rather seen coverage for Luol Deng's absence be drafted with the 29th pick.
However, the fact that Teague was the starting point guard on essentially a very quality D-League team in college has grown on Mat. His experience running the offense for the national champions falls right in line with what GarPax usually looks for out of their draft picks, which is reputable college and big game experience.
Teague is 6'2" in height and weighs 180 pounds. For his position and height he walks around with a very solid frame. He is a psychical specimen not to be overlooked. His explosiveness while running the point at Kentucky was another of his strong suits. Time and time again defensives couldn't deny him the ability to get to the rim. Similar, in some ways, to how Rose plays the game. Mat believes this will come in handy when speaking to the issue of fluidity without Rose on the floor this season.
His work on the pick and roll at Kentucky was lauded amongst experts. Mat noticed his ability to work with the likes of Anthony Davis and others which turned them into such a success. Imagining running this type of pick and roll with Boozer, Jo, or Taj makes Mat salivate. Hopefully that part of his game can translate well to the Bulls offense.
His defense is something of a project. Coach Thibs is the perfect person to take on this project as well. Teague has the psychical tools to matchup well with NBA PGs, but the question is how much will his size hinder his performance on that end of the court.
Mat believes his consistency is a huge question mark. His jump shot has been a cause for concern all through out his college career. A PG playing Thibs' system is usually asked to handle a portion of the scoring for the offense, and Mat believes this will be a key to the Bulls success without Rose on the floor. Considering Teague will most likely see plenty of minutes without the starting PG on the floor, this will be a huge issue as to whether or not he can adapt to a much longer schedule against much better competition night in and night out. If he can stay consistent, we may see something of a prodigy being molded right in front of our eyes.
Overall, Mat believes Teague is a project. A project that will see an increased amount of NBA time so he will literally be growing right before our eyes this upcoming season. As previously stated, a better pick could have been made at that position. Mat believes a small forward in that spot would have aided the Bulls in coping with the loss of a integral portion of their minutes and defense in reference to Deng. Signing a veteran point guard in the offseason made more sense from a stand point that PG means a lot more to the Bulls offensively.
Mat congratulates Marquis Teague and wishes him well on his endeavors with the Bulls, just as he would with any new member of the team. He looks forward to seeing him running the point hiding amidst the shadows of the Madhouse. Truth be told, he misses seeing his beloved Bulls play in general.
Go Bulls.
Previous to the pick, Mat was very vocal in his displeasure with the possibility of his Bulls drafting a backup point guard to bridge the gap while Rose was out. He would have much rather seen coverage for Luol Deng's absence be drafted with the 29th pick.
However, the fact that Teague was the starting point guard on essentially a very quality D-League team in college has grown on Mat. His experience running the offense for the national champions falls right in line with what GarPax usually looks for out of their draft picks, which is reputable college and big game experience.
Teague is 6'2" in height and weighs 180 pounds. For his position and height he walks around with a very solid frame. He is a psychical specimen not to be overlooked. His explosiveness while running the point at Kentucky was another of his strong suits. Time and time again defensives couldn't deny him the ability to get to the rim. Similar, in some ways, to how Rose plays the game. Mat believes this will come in handy when speaking to the issue of fluidity without Rose on the floor this season.
His work on the pick and roll at Kentucky was lauded amongst experts. Mat noticed his ability to work with the likes of Anthony Davis and others which turned them into such a success. Imagining running this type of pick and roll with Boozer, Jo, or Taj makes Mat salivate. Hopefully that part of his game can translate well to the Bulls offense.
His defense is something of a project. Coach Thibs is the perfect person to take on this project as well. Teague has the psychical tools to matchup well with NBA PGs, but the question is how much will his size hinder his performance on that end of the court.
Mat believes his consistency is a huge question mark. His jump shot has been a cause for concern all through out his college career. A PG playing Thibs' system is usually asked to handle a portion of the scoring for the offense, and Mat believes this will be a key to the Bulls success without Rose on the floor. Considering Teague will most likely see plenty of minutes without the starting PG on the floor, this will be a huge issue as to whether or not he can adapt to a much longer schedule against much better competition night in and night out. If he can stay consistent, we may see something of a prodigy being molded right in front of our eyes.
Overall, Mat believes Teague is a project. A project that will see an increased amount of NBA time so he will literally be growing right before our eyes this upcoming season. As previously stated, a better pick could have been made at that position. Mat believes a small forward in that spot would have aided the Bulls in coping with the loss of a integral portion of their minutes and defense in reference to Deng. Signing a veteran point guard in the offseason made more sense from a stand point that PG means a lot more to the Bulls offensively.
Mat congratulates Marquis Teague and wishes him well on his endeavors with the Bulls, just as he would with any new member of the team. He looks forward to seeing him running the point hiding amidst the shadows of the Madhouse. Truth be told, he misses seeing his beloved Bulls play in general.
Go Bulls.
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