- March 27, 2015
- 5:56 pm
- Sara K. Gramata
- no comments
The Chicago Bulls: Injuries are a blessing in disguise
Today’s guest post is by Connor Gomer.
The injuries that have plagued the Chicago Bulls over the last three seasons have been beyond frustrating. Not seeing your best player and franchise point guard compete night in and night out because of some unlucky knee injuries is the last thing you want to see as a fan. But this season is different. While Jimmy Butler and Derrick Rose were both sidelined with injuries for the month of March, they may have been a blessing in disguise for the Bulls.
The Bulls have gone just 7-7 in March, their worst record in any month this season. But they have found some bright spots in the dark tunnel that is their IR list. Nikola Mirotic has not only emerged as a clear sixth man, but also one of the most prolific scorers coming off the bench in the entire NBA. Something that would not have surfaced, had Butler and Rose been in the lineup.
If we look at the Bulls roster, with the new knowledge Mirotic is a major contributing force to the Bulls’ offense, we will realize that the Bulls have one of the best benches in the NBA. Sure we have Taj Gibson to back up Joakim Noah and Pau Gasol, but with Mirotic providing that extra push in the scoring column, the Bulls have now what the Oklahoma City Thunder had with James Harden in 2012.
If Mirotic can continue scoring 20.6 points per game, like he had in March, the Bulls will be the dark horse to come out of the East. With a healthy Derrick Rose rejoining his team right before the playoffs start, watch out for those Chicago Bulls to make a late season run at an NBA championship.
Read more from Connor Gomer at http://fansided.com/author/cgomer/