Today’s football lineup is pretty ew, especially with no Bears. Thank goodness we have some basketball on tonight!
• How much say will Billy Donovan have as the Bulls reconstruct their roster? Well, as far as we know, this was a key factor in selling Donovan on the job. The potential for a legitimate voice within the organization made the Bulls gig an intriguing one for the former-OKC head coach. Considering Donovan’s roots come from coaching at the collegiate level, where he often worked to recruit talent and build a roster, this all makes plenty of sense. We should expect Donovan to be a big part of the decision-making moving forward, specifically as it relates to who is worth a long-term commitment. As someone who has worked with a lot of young talent, I’m sure Arturas Karnisovas and Marc Eversley will take his opinion to heart when making the tough decisions.
• The reason I bring this up is because of a point Sam Smith made in his latest mailbag. The long-time Bulls reporter mentioned Donovan’s relationship with Thunder player Andre Roberson – a guy who has battled injuries throughout his career, but is still viewed as a rather elite defensive player – and how that might tell us something about Kris Dunn’s future in Chicago. Dunn was the only player not to join the Bulls in the recent in-market bubble. Eversley told reporters he was still rehabbing his end-of-season knee injury, but NBC Sports Chicago’s K.C. Johnson reported that it might have more to do with his impending free agency. No matter what it is, with a new front office in the mix, it’s hard to guess whether Dunn will be back with the organization next season. The organization may want to use what little money they have to sign shake-up this roster at least a tiny bit with one or two new role players. With that said, Dunn did make a strong case as a defensive specialist, and that is a role Donovan has shown he likes to utilize with Roberson. Soooo … could Donovan save Dunn?
• We have no idea what next season will look like, but I do feel like we can safely assume one thing – the bottom of the eastern conference will be a battle. An impressive battle? Maybe not, but a battle, nonetheless. The Magic, Wizards, and Bulls should all be in the mix for the No. 8 seed, in my opinion. I guess the Hawks and Hornets could also sneak their way into the conversation, but I feel like they’re both still one step behind those other squads. Anyway, what this tells us is that, while the Bulls have a lot of competition, it’s not necessarily fierce competition. The rest of the eastern conference is a different story, but it doesn’t feel like it should be that hard to separate yourself from the bottom of the pack.
• Can Jimmy Butler do it again? I sure hope so.
1 win away from being 1 win away pic.twitter.com/IC8qjagZZZ
— Miami HEAT (@MiamiHEAT) October 11, 2020
• Wait, is this not how you’re supposed to open a shoebox?
https://twitter.com/TheHoopCentral/status/1315133244438802433?s=20
• BEST. TEAM. EVER.
https://twitter.com/Ballislife/status/1314721512600072192?s=20