The Chicago Bulls will have three players in their starting lineup who averaged more than 20 points per game last season with their acquisition of DeMar DeRozan.
In addition to the Bulls’ new Big 3 of Zach LaVine, DeRozan and Nikola Vucevic, Chicago signed Lonzo Ball to be the team’s franchise point guard. The most common belief is that Ball will be Chicago’s top facilitator, racking up assists as he feeds three viable options to put the ball in the hoop.
That’s not a crazy thought, but I believe the Bulls may actually look to DeRozan to be the team’s primary playmaker–at least in the half-court–while Ball is the man feeding the Bulls’ athletes and bigs in transition.
Lonzo Ball Hasn’t Proven to Be a Creator in the Half-Court Sets
While Ball has excellent vision and is an accurate passer (6.4 assists per game in his career), he does most of his damage in transition in this regard. In half-court sets, his inability to beat defenders off the dribble and to draw a big man in defensive rotations have limited his chances to facilitate on dribble drives.
Ball doesn’t often create his own shot. Two-thirds of his field goals come off of an assist, and 83% of his threes come from teammate passes.
Essentially, he’s a unique 3-and-D guard who can more than handle the ball in transition who has vastly improved his ability to knock down threes and free throws. Because of his size, strength and commitment on the defensive end of the floor, he is a guy who can guard three positions, and perhaps a fourth when teams go small and use a stretch-big.
The combination of defensive versatility with transition ball handling and improved shooting make Ball a strong acquisition for the Bulls. However, it doesn’t give Chicago the second facilitator it needs alongside LaVine.
That’s likely where DeRozan will come into play.
DeRozan is a Underrated Passer and Pick-and-Roll Executor
Most know DeRozan has averaged more than 20 points per game each of the last 8 seasons. Fewer know he averaged a career-high 6.9 assists per contest for the San Antonio Spurs last season.
DeRozan solidified himself as a legit facilitator in San Antonio, and he wasn’t surrounded by nearly as good of a supporting cast as he will have in Chicago.
Kevin O’Connor of The Ringer wrote:
Since 2018-19, DeRozan ranks third in isolation scoring efficiency among all 104 players to log at least 200 chances, according to Second Spectrum. Only Steph Curry and James Harden rank ahead of him. Kevin Durant and Zion Williamson are right behind him. This statistic may come as a surprise, considering DeRozan’s reputation as an inefficient player. But even on the Spurs, a team without a lot of knockdown 3-point shooting on the roster, DeRozan was able to feast, getting to the basket or pulling up from midrange. That uptick in scoring efficiency is a by-product of DeRozan’s playmaking development. He takes better shots and looks to pass far more frequently. He weaponizes the threat of his midrange jumper, snaking his way into the paint and using jabs or pump fakes to draw defenders out of position and open passing windows. He plays with a seasoning that he lacked earlier in his career, when he was making All-Star teams. DeRozan could be a perfect mentor for LaVine, who faces similar questions about his passing ability. But more immediately, DeRozan will provide balance as a shot creator worthy of taking the ball out of LaVine’s hands. DeRozan can now create opportunities for him, or carry the load on nights when he’s feeling it. This is why the Bulls will sign him to a three-year, $85 million contract, after sending Thaddeus Young, Al-Farouq Aminu, a protected first-round pick, and two future second-rounders to the Spurs to acquire him.
It’s not just DeRozan’s simple passing and facilitating that make him a potentially great complement to LaVine, Ball, Nikola Vucevic and even Patrick Williams; More specifically, it is DeRozan’s play in pick and roll. Take a look at this statistic from Hardwood Paroxysm.
64 players ran at least 200 pick and rolls that ended in a shot, turnover, or assist last season.
The most efficient player in pick and rolls including passes was Kawhi Leonard, averaging 1.149 points per possession.
DeMar DeRozan was No. 2 at 1.104.
When you’re second only to Kawhi Leonard in a category associated with efficiency, chances are you’re doing pretty well in that aspect of the game.
When you look at the Bulls still-shaping roster, it is hard not to recognize their offensive versatility, and the clear increase of weapons on the floor with the starting five.
Quite honestly, the biggest issue this team should have is on defense where neither LaVine, DeRozan nor Vucevic have ever established themselves.
Bulls fans should hope there are strides taken in that vein. Patrick Williams and Ball will compete on that end of the floor, but head coach Billy Donovan will need to get his three stars to commit as well. It should be an interesting season.
Also Read:
- Bulls Linked to Retired 7-Time All-Star Considering a Comeback
- Twitter Reacts to Bulls Acquiring Lonzo Ball in Sign-and-Trade Deal
- Bulls Make a Slew of Roster-Reshaping Deals
- Bulls On the Verge of Offering Franchise PG $80 Million Deal: Report
- Twitter Reacts to Bulls Selecting Ayo Dosunmu in 2021 NBA Draft
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Bulls May Have Surprising Role Waiting for DeMar DeRozan