Three keys to a successful offseason for the Chiciago Bulls
The Chicago Bulls will attempt to take a different approach with the development of their young talent with the firing of Jim Boylen and the hiring of Billy Donovan as their new head coach. Last season, the Bulls finished with a 22-43 record while finishing 11th place in the Eastern Conference.
It was due time for this young team to acquire a new leader in their locker room and Donovan should be the perfect fit. Boylen had talent up and down the roster but was unable to bring the best out of the team. The rotations he inserted at times were questionable, he had difficulty adjusting on the fly and he failed to utilize the strengths of his players.
During Donovan’s tenure in Oklahoma City, he took the Thunder to the postseason every year he was there. The job he did with the Thunder, especially because they lost their two best players last offseason was truly amazing as many critics didn’t expect the Thunder to be a playoff team as the nearly pulled off a dramatic upset of the Houston Rockets in the first round of the NBA playoffs but fell short but not before taking the Rockets to the brink of elimination as they stretched that series to seven games.
Donovan always seems to get the best out of his players and this youthful Bulls roster should benefit from Donovan showing them the ropes. It will be interesting to see how Lauri Markkanen and Zach LaVine performs under Donovan’s guidance as both players have yet to reach their full potential.
The first thing Donovan must do is establish an offensive identity and figure out what system best fits the personnel on the team. The roster is full of athletic, quick guards and it would make sense if Donovan installs a fast-paced offense and decides to push the tempo.