Heading into the offseason, there was a strong belief around Chicago that the Bulls would either have to unload Jimmy Butler or Derrick Rose. It wasn't that they didn't get along; their styles of play simply clashed. Both guys need the ball in their hands to reach their optimal levels of production, and it wasn't always pretty when they shared the court, especially as Butler's star rose.
Rose was shipped off to New York, but Chicago quickly added a pair of ball-dominant guards in Rajon Rondo and Dwyane Wade.
The responsibility of figuring out how to make these pieces fit together falls onto the shoulders of head coach Fred Hoiberg. Last season, Hoiberg was criticized for his mellow demeanor in the face of adversity, failing to motivate a unit that had so much success under Tom Thibodeau.
Now, he's looking forward to 2016-17 as a fresh start, and getting the trio of Wade, Rondo, and Butler to mesh is a top priority.
To do so, Hoiberg is watching game film of big threes from the past to see how to best utilize a number of players on the court who need multiple touches and looks at the bucket.
Coach Hoiberg, from K.C. Johnson of the Chicago Tribune:
I've been watching a lot of film to see how to best utilize the talents of the players on our roster.
“Dwyane is a tough matchup for opposing teams with him and Jimmy (Butler) on the wings and Rajon (Rondo) at the point. A lot of how we attack will be based on matchups and who the defender is and whose hands we're going to put the ball in to make plays.”
The primary concern is with the Bulls' ability, or lack thereof, to stretch the floor when all three of these guys are on the court. Butler is the only one who can consistently knock down long-range jumpers, and even he's admitted that his shot can improve (from the B.S. podcast with Bill Simmons).
All three guys excel at slashing into the paint, with Rondo focusing on distributing the ball from there and both Wade and Butler usually set on finishing. Wade had the the highest usage rate in Miami, while Butler had the third highest in Chicago, only behind Rose and Pau Gasol.
Despite all of the questions, Hoiberg remains confident that they'll find a way to be successful.
“Great players always figure it out,” Hoiberg said. “It has to be about one thing, and that's winning. Based on who has the hot hand on any given night, you play through that guy, and the rest of the team plays off him.”
Asked who gets the last shot in a tie game, Hoiberg laughed before answering.
“We'll see who has it going,” he said.
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