http://myespn.go.com/blogs/truehoop/0-36-44/Derrick-Rose-Eight-Games-In.html

Chicago is struggling offensively under head coach Vinny Del Negro. The Bulls are 3-5 and they rank 17th in offensive efficiency. Del Negro is employing a D'Antoni-style offense in Chicago, albeit without the full range of personnel Phoenix had at its disposal during its salad days.

The recent Frontcourt Fiasco  is the kind of game that puts an exclamation point on the thought that a lot of us are having, namely, that the lack of ability of Bulls' bigs has gone from the weakness we are hoping the Bulls will overcome together, to the insurmountable obstacle.

I believe that the writer of this article is being kind when he describes the Bulls as bing "without the full range of personnel Phoenix had". The elephant in the room just can't be ignored anymore--I'm now hearing guys on the radio talk about whether Pax gets fired.

One of the Chicago radio personalities was saying that if either Vinnie del Negro or Tyrus Thomas does not work out for the Bulls, Pax is gone. It was probably Buffone, which means I know the statement will be taken with a grain of salt, but still.

Now, with Rose injured that calls into question the fact that the Bulls seem to be burdening him with so much scoring instead of drawing and dishing. Because he has no faith in the bigs' ability to capitalize off of his penetration, he has to force the issue by actually finishing on those drives to the hoop that comparable PG's would have a big to finish the play--Chris Paul or a Deron Williams would drop a pass off to West or Boozer for a swish. And because of this lack of scoring, the Bulls are having him log some pretty heavy minutes, as well.

I wonder if the answer is employing Gooden and Deng in pick-and-pops, as both have a mid-range jumper. I just don't see the Bulls going to this that often, though. Other than that, it's a matter of waiting 'til the cows come home for Tyrus and Noah to learn basic pick-and-roll or pick-and-pop basketball.

Sometimes it takes an article like this to remind us what the Bulls' offense is supposed to look like. When you remember the D'Antoni-style offense of the last few years in Phoenix, you realize how far off we are.

I have no doubt that being an NBA general manager is a very tough job. Pax at least cleaned up the mess that Jerry Krause left behind, getting us into the playoffs and into the second round.

But one of the recurring criticisms is that he has never been able to secure a low post scorer. In 2006 he drafted Tyrus Thomas and in 2007 he drafted Joakim Noah. They've shown us glimpses, but seldom have they put together a number of impressive games as starters, and they have certainly never put up the kinds of big numbers that Marc Gasol put up yesterday.

27 points and 16 rebounds! He also tallied 1 assist, 1 steal and 3 blocks. Forget about the first couple of games in their rookie seasons--can you imagine Tyrus or Joakim ever doing this in the league??

In Paxson's defense, Marc was drafted well into the 2nd round of the draft, #48 in 2007 (the Bulls picked Aaron Gray with #49, and Gray is a horribly, horribly slow oaf of an NBA big man). So Pax certainly was not alone in thinking that Marc was not a top-shelf talent. But the reality of the situation is that Pax is being paid to spot talent where other GM's don't. Krause's big claim to fame was the swindling of Pippen from the Sonics, who failed to see what kind of special player he could be. RC Buford has time and time again selected future stars from the draft that other GM's passed on. Dumars has built a perennial contender by taking the castoffs of other teams.

So Pax shouldn't be judged according to what other GM's also failed to see. He should be judged on his ability to assemble a competitive team, which includes filling certain needs.

Pax has now had over 5 and a half years to find one decent low post presence. And it looks like the best he can do is Aaron Gray. Oh and by the way, your team is in disarray, your big stud small forward is playing like he's never been on a basketball court before, and if not for the sheer dumb luck of #1 overall, this team would still be looking for its first win.

Paxson:  WTF?

I recently read somewhere (fanhouse.com?) that Bonzi Wells is an unrestricted free agent at the moment. Add to that the fact that there's an impasse with Ben Gordon, along with the fact that the Bulls have a bunch of intriguing parts with no real identity.

Well a bunch of intriguing parts with no real identity also described the Bulls of the Eddie Robinson era.

The Bulls need to make a decision and affimatively choose what their identity will be; not cobble together a bunch of parts that clearly didn't match well chemistry-wise last season, and hope that a rookie PG and a rookie coach can energize everyone. That's not fair to Rose (or VDN for that matter).

So how should the Bulls establish their new identity?

Well, the best teams in the league have proven that you can go deep into the playoffs with 3 stars. And it's not just the Celtics. The Spurs, the Suns (prior to this year), the emerging Magic, the Lakers, the Warriors two seasons ago, the Mavs.

Everywhere you look, it's the tripod approach. You could even argue that the Pistons, the supposed example of no-stars-all-teamwork, got by primarily on the talent of Rip, Rasheed and Billups.

So then the next questions are, who to get rid of and who to keep. I believe that the Bulls should start shedding payroll massively. This means getting rid of Hinrich, and Noc, two guys who most personify the Little Engine That Could team that made it so far two seasons ago. By shedding the salaries of Noc and Hinrich, even if they get pennies on the dollar in return, the Bulls would theoretically free up enough to sign Gordon. Then they can throw a little money at Bonzi Wells and save the rest for upcoming free agents/extensions. (Capologists, please jump in, as I admit that I'm not one.)

You need a tall SG? Start Bonzi. You need scoring punch or a closer? Bring in Ben Gordon, the world's highest paid 6th man. Justify it by emphasizing that he's a closer. And, heck, give him about 15+ starts each season to keep other teams honest. (Or more to feed his ego a little.)

But won't Bonzi have a bad attitude? I tend to think he'd be grateful to join a young team on the rise after the horrible few years he's been through.

And of course, take away Larry Hughes' entitlement minutes. You don't even have to trade the guy, just tell him his minutes are going to take a back seat to Wells'.

Thabo backs up primarily the 3, but can also back up the 1 or 2 as needed. Or you can trade him.

This team won't get us to the conference finals right away, but that is exactly the point. According to this approach, we declare that the three stars are Deng, Rose and Gordon. If they lose a little in the beginning, so what? Let them lose together before they figure it out and start dominating. And by the way, I do believe that when surrounded by jump-shooting weapons such as Deng and Gordon, Rose will find a way to dominate. And for the record, I don't feel Kirk and Noc fit well with Rose, Reinsdorf's favoritism be damned.

This will also give us a chance to see what Tyrus has. Noah has shown some consistency, but no one is exactly waiting for him to build the arsenal of offensive weapons, as his specialty is more along the lines of put-backs and being an energy player. But the real question concerns Tyrus, who has shown flashes of offensive potential. Is he Michael Turner or is he Cedric Benson? Give the man his minutes and let us find out! If the Bulls end up horrible at the 4 and 5 spots and they end up missing the playoffs, then fine. Draft yet another big, and in the meantime, look (again) at free agents.

We've got time; Rose is going to be, what, 20 years old to start the season? Meanwhile, Hinrich and Noc are starting to show some age. By trading them, the team gets younger, meaning more time to grow together while maintaining continuity.

The key here is letting Rose develop, and letting him develop the identity of the team. The Little Engine That Could had a great run, but it just ran out of steam.