NBA Free Agency: Top 5 Underrated Free Agents
By Bryce Olin
I still can’t believe the Bulls got rid of Deng last season. With Deng and a healthy Derrick Rose, the Bulls are just as good as any team in the Eastern Conference, even the Heat. They’ve played the last two seasons without their best player. There was no reason mess that whole situation up. Now, because Deng was moved, the Bulls are a player in the Carmelo Anthony sweepstakes, but is it all really worth it? The Bulls could win the title next season with Deng as their small forward. All right, sorry for the minor rant.
Deng is a great defender. There were so many times over the course of his career in Chicago where Deng went toe-to-toe with LeBron James. Not many guys can do that. Deng can also score, which people tend to forget. No, he’s not a number one option, which he had to be at times while Rose was out, but Deng’s definitely a capable second or third scorer.
Deng gets a bad rap because of his injury problems. At this point of his career, it’s not like he’s just going to stop getting hurt either. Teams will have to factor Deng’s expected missed time into their decision when they think about signing him. Still, Deng is an above average player in the league and has multiple good years in front of him, especially if he ends up on a team like Dallas who can limit Deng’s minutes and get the most out of him offensively.