The Chicago Bulls’ free agency moves were overshadowed by Kevin Durant’s decision to join the Golden State Warriors. Nonetheless, the departure of Derrick Rose, Pau Gasol, and Joakim Noah, as well as the addition of Dwyane Wade, and Rajon Rondo could have dominated the headlines had this been any other year.
The confluence of these two stars along with Jimmy Butler seems more like a ploy to revitalize Chicago's fan base, sell more tickets, and attract more free agents than an actual effort to form a competitive roster, yet the sheer amount of talent these three possess could be enough to help the team make it to the playoffs.
This year’s free agency was particularly rough for the Bulls. Given the fact that the franchise failed to attract other prime free agents, perhaps, from a business standpoint, signing Wade and Rondo was the best they could do. The circumstances may have put the team in a position where they have nothing to lose, so they went and got two players on short-term contracts, each of which comes with a large fanbase.
They acquired two big names who can further cement Chicago as a prime free agent destination for the future. The homecoming of Wade fuels hope that he can do for Chicago what Lebron James did for Cleveland. By signing the two veterans to short contracts, the Bulls simply postponed their much needed rebuild in favor of propping up a present that would have otherwise gone to the dogs.
Yes, the Bulls need to get younger and more athletic, but with the signing of a bunch of veterans, they ensured that they can give their current young players continued exposure to experienced and successful stars.
The Bulls have a cadre of players on the verge of breaking out. Doug McDermott, Bobby Portis, and Nikola Mirotic can only benefit from having two champions on the roster; one a reliable scorer and the other a dedicated passer.
The problems start when we look at the signings from a basketball-centric point of view. Wade, Rondo, and Butler’s playing style overlap in various ways. All three need the ball in their hands to get the offense running.
Rajon Rondo is a pass-first guard, and by that definition, needs to be able to run the offense in order to thrive. Jimmy Butler’s playing style is especially similar to that of Wade in his youth. Both are iso-heavy players who look to drive first and take a jump shot second. Rondo drives to the rim out of necessity. After a decade in the league, he has yet to develop a reliable outside, even midrange, shot.
Indeed, the preference of all three guys for staying inside the three-point arc is worrisome. Wade, Butler, and Rondo combined for a grand total of 133 made three pointers last year. Having three guards who clog the lane because they can’t shoot particularly well from outside the arc seems like a recipe for disaster.
Off the court, there are some concerns as well. Fred Hoiberg is still a relatively new coach and the addition of two superstars could be problematic to his efforts to forge a new beginning for the Bulls. Rondo and Wade have a history of being dismissive of their coaches and their presence could wreak havoc in a locker room still scrambling for some sense of stability.
Wade is accustomed to a certain status in Miami. He may come in with expectations that he would get the same sort of treatment and deference in Chicago. It doesn’t help that Wade likely signed with the Bulls not out of love for the team, but out of spite for Pat Riley. It may not sit well with Butler that the Bulls signed another ball-dominant elite guard just as they had gotten rid of Rose. Ideally, this could be a potential Eddie Jones–Kobe Bryant situation where an older player with a similar but more honed skillset mentors a budding superstar. The worst case would be that Butler would take these moves as a slight; a failure on the part of the Bulls’ front office to fully put their trust in him.
In 2014, the Phoenix Suns fielded a three-guard lineup of Eric Bledsoe, Isaiah Thomas, and Goran Dragic. Their three-headed monster experiment has shown that multiple ball-dominant guards have a hard time finding a working rhythm with each other. The trio was supposed to be an unstoppable force, able to fuel an offense with adrenaline and creativity for a full 48 minutes, yet things didn't exactly work out as planned.
It seems inevitable that the same case would happen with this year’s Bulls – that Butler, Wade, and Rondo would step on each other’s toes. The difference between the past Phoenix experiment and the Bulls’ future reality is significant.
Wade and Rondo are not some young bucks looking to make a name for themselves in the league. Yes, they are superstar-caliber players who have shown time and time again that they belong in the upper echelons of the league. As Rondo said in an interview, the Bulls now have three alphas on the team. And yet perhaps now is the only possible time that such a combination can actually have a chance of working.
Rondo and Wade are veterans of superteams. They have experienced times when they had to carry a team on their shoulders, and times when they had to defer to other players. This experience can help them recognize that in order to thrive in Chicago, they must accept that the Bulls is Jimmy Butler’s team.
The coexistence of all three starts with this simple acknowledgement. Rajon Rondo seems to have taken the initiative in this regard. As a dedicated pass-first point guard, it seems more likely that he would have an easier time blending with the team. Yet Rondo may revert back to being a stubborn genius that can’t work well with others. Only time will tell if he can continue what he started with the Sacramento Kings. Wade and Butler need to come to an understanding on how they can mesh well with each other. The prospect of Wade wanting to play well in his hometown and not tarnish his reputation could give him impetus to exert extra effort in winning over the team and its fans with exemplary conduct. It is up to these veterans to show Butler that they have no qualms in ceding authority to him and making him their leader.
Rondo: "it's Jimmy's team. Jimmy, Wade and then whatever after that."
— Vincent Goodwill (@vgoodwill) July 7, 2016
Another possible way that the Wade and Rondo signing can turn into a success is the idea that one of them can take charge of the team’s second unit. Much like the role Manu Ginobili played with the San Antonio Spurs’ bench mob, Wade or Rondo could best help the team by making the Bulls’ reserves act as a cohesive and potent unit. This could do wonders for the development of the Bulls’ role players. The presence of superstar veterans can help elevate the play of the second unit, a key factor in building a playoff contender in today’s NBA landscape.
It can be quite hard to fathom why the Bulls made such signings when they could have chosen to go on a full rebuild. Perhaps the potential draw of signing such big names and a lack of interest from other free agents made the Rondo and Wade signing the best possible move during the offseason.
The acquisition of Dwyane Wade and Rajon Rondo brings numerous challenges to a roster already brimming with uncertainty. A lot of things would have to go right in order for these three superstar guards to coexist. The likely outcome would be another mediocre season.
But there is still that tiny hope that this new whole could be greater than the sum of its parts. By postponing a full rebuild to bring in veteran superstars and develop a slightly more enticing foundation, the Bulls’ seemingly perplexing offseason moves could yield surprising results for a franchise still scrambling to find its new identity.
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