I thought I was a genius when booking my flight home from this mini-vacation (shoutout to Matt for covering me this weekend). While I’d be in the air for the noon NFL games, I could use the in-flight Live TV to keep up. Then, by the time the Chicago Bears and Caleb Williams took the primetime stage, I’d be back on my couch and ready for the new Bears to shock the world!
Turns out it would’ve been much better to be 36,000 feet in the air. I lost a few more hours of West Coast rays. Stupid me.
My apologies if you were coming here in an attempt to avoid Chicago Bears talk. Not only am I too frustrated not to vent a little, but I actually couldn’t stop thinking about the Chicago Bulls after I saw a distressed Caleb Williams on the sideline. The No. 1 overall pick provided an eerily similar look to that of an exhausted Justin Fields. His face read a combination of pain (you know, because of the seven sacks) and confusion. We’ve seen this same look pop up on the Bulls’ bench in recent years, and I can’t say it normally leads to good things.
To be sure, I recognize it’s only Game 2. I’m still holding plenty of stock in both Caleb Williams and the future direction of this Chicago Bears franchise. Not to mention, the Texans are a very good football team! But Bulls fans know well the dangers of losing confidence early on. The last thing the Bears want to do is see Williams become terrified to throw the football or refuse to trust his teammates. Confidence and creativity are what made him who he is. Whether it be Lauri Markkanen, Wendell Carter Jr., or Patrick Williams, time and again the dysfunctional Bulls have struggled to instill belief in their players and highlight their best qualities. I fear the Bears are at risk of doing the same due to their organization-wide QB incompetence. FIX THE O-LINE! FIX THE PLAYCALLING!
Also, this was a Jim-Boylen-like answer from Matt Erberflus. It’s ok to admit you were wrong and not double down on a mistake!
Speaking of young players, Ayo Dosunmu held a youth basketball camp recently in Chicago and had plenty of help from his friends! Patrick Williams, Coby White, Dalen Terry, and Julian Phillips were all in attendance to help out their teammate. Content creator Turbo Teyo …
I know this sounds weird – especially coming from someone who is practically hoping the Bulls finish near the bottom of the East – but I think we’re going to have a lot of fun watching the team this year. We consistently watched this organization underachieve and struggle to find an identity over the past few seasons. I don’t think either will be a problem this year. Everyone on this roster currently has something to prove. Coby White is trying to show the 2023-24 version of him is here to stay. Ayo Dosunmu is trying to show he can be a consistent scoring threat. Patrick Williams is trying to show he was worth the payday. Julian Phillips and Dalen Terry are trying to prove they deserve a rotation spot. The list goes on and on!
As for finding an identity, while there will be some ugly games, it’s already easy to see how this group fits on paper. We’re going to see a lot more transition basketball and a lot more consistent off-ball movement. Josh Giddey is the kind of playmaker who sets an uptempo and active tone. The defense is going to remain a concern, but the offensive structure could actually look considerably better at times.
Will Onuralp Bitim make the roster? Considering the names the Bulls brought into camp, I have a feeling that he may soon be on the outside looking in. Arturas Karnisovas could always look to keep him around on their last two-way deal if they want to give someone like EJ Liddell or Talen Horton-Tucker the final full-time roster spot. But I wouldn’t be surprised if both his roster spot and the two-way deal end up going to someone else.
With that said, there were certainly flashes from Bitim last year. He may not have hit his 3s at a high rate, but there is clearly a strong jump shot there. He also has a pretty strong frame to pair with some sneaky athleticism around the basket. It’s possible even his limited action last season will give him the upper hand come training camp, but we’ll see.
I’m glad Michael Pina put this together because I’m not sure people realize how insane the Alex Caruso addition will be for OKC. They are legitimate championship contenders. Get that ring, AC!
Slowly but surely we’re getting more and more updates about the Bulls’ new network …
Elias Schuster is the Lead Chicago Bulls writer at Bleacher Nation. He started with BN full-time in 2019 immediately after graduating from the University of Illinois Urbana Champaign with a degree in Journalism (yes, he started with the Jim Boylen Era). Since joining, Elias has been the driving force behind Bulls and NBA content for both the site and social accounts. You can follow him on Twitter/X @Schuster_Elias.
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