2008-2009 (w/Ben Gordon):

FG%: .457 (16th)
PPG: 105.1 (8th)
Opponents FG%: .458 (15th)

2009-2010 (w/o Ben Gordon):

FG%: .433 (27th)
PPG: 91.4 (27th)
Opponents FG%: .457 (18th)

The obvious answer to the question posed is that this city was over him about 6 months after he won 6th Man of the Year.  I will never understand why.  After all that hater talk about how bad his defense was and how all his turnovers were killing the Bulls on offense, it sure looks to me like the Bulls are missing Gordon, wouldn’t you say?  Sure he took some bad shots, but he hit a lot more of those than the “good” shots that Vinny and the Bulls have been creating for themselves lately.  And its not like the team defense has improved all that much without him, as opponents’ fg% has dropped only 1/100th of a percent this season.

Okay, I am not going to rehash my defense of Ben Gordon here.  The bottom line is that a poor shooting Bulls team right now looks in desperate need of him.  Remember how frustrating it was that Vinny couldn’t seem to draw up plays at the end of games (or ever really) that involved BG dribbling around like a chicken with his head cut off, and then jacking up a terrible shot?  Sure it went in a good amount of the time, since we all know he hit some big shots in his career, but it was difficult to watch.  Well guess what?  Now we don’t even have that.  Rose refuses to pull the trigger, Salmons and Hinrich might as well be shooting blindfolded, and Brad Miller is, well, Brad Miller.

So as Gordon returns to town with claims of having “moved on”, and I believe he has since this team and city basically took a shit on him for most of his career here (Skiles bringing him off the bench for 3 years, Paxson not giving him an extension, Paxson not giving him an extension, etc), the question is, have the Bulls REALLY moved on?  Perhaps psychologically the break with Gordon was occurring since his first day here, but in terms of what the Bulls really need to succeed this season, the people that truly understand basketball know what he meant to the team and we miss him.  Bad.

Trust me Bulls fans, you will miss him.

h/t: BDL

Now he goes to Detroit, and StevieY pointed out to me that they appear to be trying to create a UConn reunion.  With Rip already a part of the team, and now Gordon and Villanueva joining up, the only logical next step is to go out and acquire Hasheem Thabeet and Ray Allen and call it a day.  In all seriousness, this makes the Pistons annoyingly competitive.  Not competitive in a Championship sense, but competitive enough to give the Bulls problems in the bottom half of the Eastern Conference playoff race.  On the bright side, this cuts into the Pistons ability to compete for free agents over the next 5 years since they have a decent chunk of change wrapped up in these guys.  Gordon’s contract is reported at 5 years $55 million and Villanueva’s is 5 years $40 million.  Those two guys together equal 1/3 of the Pistons cap space, with the Cap unlikely to rise anytime soon (it may even shrink this summer).  Hopefully this will keep Detroit mired in mediocrity for a while while the Bulls shoot past them in the standings over the next few seasons.

For Ben Gordon himself, it is really an unfortunate situation that he was treated like crap while Deng was so beloved and got rewarded the big contract.  Not to say Deng didn’t deserve it, but the fact of the matter is that Ben Gordon was one of the top 10 shooting guards in the league by most statistical metrics for the last few years, while Deng was injured and performing at an average rate, and management and fans were all certain he would “take that next step” (He’s still injured, by the way).  If I were Ben Gordon, I would feel similar to the way he feels.  Would I have rejected the 5 year $50 million dollars that the Bulls were offering me the past 2 summers?  Probably not.  But whether he really rejected them or whether he was being jerked around by Paxdorf, the fact that the organization continually made him look like the selfish bad guy in the media would have been enough for me to say “see you later”.  Ben Gordon was a hard working gym rat who was very coachable and well-liked by his teammates.  Hopefully Detroit understands and appreciates his skills and attitude and doesn’t continually hang him out to dry like they did in Chicago.  The big difference now is that he is playing under the weight of a huge contract and with huge contracts come huge expectations.

For the Bulls, this changes things a bit.  It is good to finally be done with the Ben Gordon saga, which seemed never ending.  Also he would have put the Bulls into the luxury tax (though only for a year and then they would have BG AND the space needed to sign a big name free agent like Bosh or Wade).  The problem is that their starting lineup is now: Rose, Hinrich, Deng/Salmons, Thomas, Noah.  Hinrich is very effective and if he can get back to the defense that he earned him his reputation as a tough player, it could be an effective lineup.  Whether he does or not, however, where will the scoring come from?  Rose?  Salmons?  Sure those guys can score, but replacing 20+ points a night (and as efficiently as BG’s excellent 45% shooting) will be very tough.  You have to think Gar Paxdorf has more moves in mind, but moving Kirk may be more difficult than it seems, since he is on the hook for $11 million a year and his contract extends past the 2010 free agent bonanza.

Overall I think this was a good move for the Bulls and Gordon and an extremely risky one for the Pistons.  Hopefully the Bulls can find a replacement for BG’s scoring, and hopefully the Pistons have locked themselves into mediocrity for the next 5 seasons.  Only time will tell.

The Arizona Republic wrote late Sunday of a rumor that involved the Suns getting Deng, Tim Thomas and another player for O’Neal.

The Bulls would be able to make a little noise in the East with O’Neal in the paint, while also freeing up cap room for 2010.

With Salmons on the payroll, I can’t imagine a better scenario than this for the Bulls.  The Bulls would be able to unload Deng’s enormous contract and take another expiring deal for 2010.  Dwayne Wade?  Chris Bosh?  All are affordable in 2010 without this deal, but the Bulls could go out and get a big name and add other pieces if they got the flexibility that would come with Shaq’s contract.  Or maybe even resign Gordon.

Unless of course, Gordon leaves (which seems likely).  In fact, according to Ben Gordon, he has a standing offer of $11 million on the table from the Pistons:

I haven’t heard they are, and General Manager Gar Forman has not come off his stance that he wants to bring Gordon back. But I also heard that Gordon’s agent allegedly has been saying he has an $11 million promise from the Pistons.

If Gordon leaves and the Shaq trade miraculously materializes, the Bulls lineup would then presumably look something like this:

PG: Rose

SG: Hinrich

SF: Salmons

PF: Tyrus

C: Shaq

Bench: Noah, Miller, Gordon(?)

Not bad for 2009-2010, and then after that, the possibilities are endless.  Are any of these rumors going to come true?

In the 1990-1991 season, that all changed.  All of a sudden, the Pistons seemed old and rusty and the Bulls were the team of the future.  With Michael Jordan and Scottie Pippen both hitting their peak at the same time, and Phil Jackson arriving to make it all come together, the Bulls swept the Pistons in the Eastern Conference Finals and went on to win their first championship of 6.  The Pistons faded into obscurity, not to be heard from again as a major force in the East until about 2002.

Fast forward to the 2005-2006 season.  The Pistons have been dominating the Eastern Conference for a few years and are the team to beat.  A young, upstart Bulls team finally starts to mesh and makes the playoffs.  They lost quickly to the Miami Heat in the first round, as the Pistons go on to another Eastern Conference Finals.  In 2006-2007, the Bulls make the Conference semi-finals, where they are unceremoniously dispatched by the Pistons in 6 games.

2007-2008 was a huge step backwards for the Bulls, but all the while the Pistons have slowly been getting older, while the Bulls have been amassing talent (Gordon, Deng, Rose, Tyrus, Noah).  On the second to last night of the 2008-2009 season, the Bulls beat the Pistons at Auburn Hills to pass them in the East and avoid an almost sure sweep by the Cavs.

I think it’s pretty clear the parallel I’m trying to draw here.  Obviously 7th place in the shitty East in 2009 is not the Eastern Conference Finals in the late 1980s and early 1990s.  Still, the similarities between last night and that amazing sweep in 1989-1990 are evident.  A young upsurging Bulls team finally overcomes the team to beat in the East.  Albeit the Bulls waited until way after the Pistons were still the team to beat this time.  Clearly, however, this incarnation of the Pistons has faded to the point of irrelevancy, and the Bulls have asserted themselves as a playoff team.  Not only a playoff team, but a team of the future.

StevieY19:  yo, i had a dream last night that rodney stuckey and vinny got in a shoving match during a game. vinny ran out onto the floor and got in his face
Stormin Norman:  and?
StevieY19:  well stuckey obviously knocked him down then started singing a 50 cent tune. then i had to argue with you to back up stuckey
Stormin Norman:  cuz i was backing up vinny?
StevieY19:  yeah
Stormin Norman:  thats the least likely part of ur dream

Relax StevieY.  The Bulls didn’t do anything to you.  Well except sweep you out of the Eastern Conference finals that one year and end any hope you had at a 3-peat.  Oh yeah, and the Bulls were something like 31-9 against you in the 90s.  Other than all that though, chill out buddy.