For a team with a 16-12 record, the Chicago Bulls are as disappointing and unhappy franchise that exists in the NBA right now (with fierce competition from the Rockets, Pelicans and Suns). With Derrick Rose and Joakim Noah nowhere near the players they used to be, the presence of a new coach, and star Jimmy Butler fresh off signing a huge contract, it seemed time for a natural changing of the leadership guard in Chicago.
Unfortunately, that transition hasn’t gone smoothly at all, and according to ESPN’s Bulls beat reporter Nick Friedell (on Tim Bontemps’ podcast), the problem goes deeper than most people dared to think, and it starts with Butler’s attitude. Here are a couple of excerpts, transcribed by Pro Basketball Talk:
You talk to anybody within that Bulls organization, and they’ll tell you that Jimmy has changed. His personality has changed. And it’s not to say he’s wrong in that.
But this was a kid that loved saying he was from Tomball, Texas and that he was just a role player on a really good team. And now he wants all the trappings that come with being a star in the league.
And that’s all well and good.
But again, this ties back into the leadership problem this team has. You can say all that, but you can’t just say, “Alright, I’m the leader.” You have to earn that respect over time. Maybe Jimmy will…
He’s really rubbed some people the wrong way with how he’s going about things. So, it’s something to watch for, and it’s something that I know is on the minds of the front office in that, “Can we trust this guy to go out and to be who we need him to be every night, and can he lead us the way that a championship-caliber team needs to be led?” And early on, the returns have been no.
Friedell prefaced these statements by saying that people around Butler told him he needed to change and be more vocal with his new contract. It makes sense if he’s trying to consciously push for a larger leadership role rather than letting it come naturally; that would come off as disingenuous, or at least annoying to the veterans who have been around longer than him.
Butler is clearly the best player on the Bulls right now. But if he’s alienating the rest of the team, it brings up the age-old question of talent vs. chemistry. Friedell suggested that if the problem gets bad enough, the Bulls would consider trading Butler.
On its face, it’s an insane thought. What could they possibly get back that would be worth trading away a player as good as Butler? Even the first overall pick isn’t guaranteed to be as valuable as an in-his-peak two-way star. Then again, the question of talent vs. chemistry comes back — if Butler was removed from the equation, would the Bulls flourish more as a unit that played for each other? Noah in particular is used to leading a team short on talent but long on heart.
If the Bulls were to trade Butler, the team that comes to mind first is the Los Angeles Lakers. They have young players to trade, the cap space to absorb Butler’s contract, and the desire for a star to build around post-Kobe. It would be a good fit, especially if Jimmy is dead-set on the “trappings that come with being a star.” There’s no better place for trappings than Los Angeles.
But we’re entertaining this too much. The Bulls just signed Butler to a max contract, and if the other veterans on the Bulls don’t like Butler’s attitude, one would hope they could talk to him about it. It’s still December, and Chicago is still in position for the playoffs, despite their lackluster performances. It may feel awkward for a while yet, but we have faith that as the playoffs draw near and arrive, all of the Bulls — including Butler — will be better able to focus on what’s important.
(Via Washington Post)
