Closing Five: Chicago Bulls Week in Review

We’re in the dead of the offseason and there’s not a whole lot to discuss. But a few things come out related to the Chicago Bulls every week, so I’m going to start putting together a short round up to make sure you have all the info you need from the week:

1. #Continuity

We finally get to see a little sneak behind the curtain as clips leaked from the Bulls offseason workouts in LA.

Very cool to see the Bulls group working out together. Feel like we don’t usually see these videos from them

Looks like no Zach or Lonzo in these clips tho 😕 pic.twitter.com/9Vh5VRKj2d

— Will Gottlieb (@Will_Gottlieb) August 3, 2022

Continuity. The buzzword of the offseason. Not really sure what it means yet, but we love to see these grainy videos in the dregs of the summer.

2. Are you kidding me, Dragic?

The Bulls announce they have offically signed Goran Dragic, who will don Timothe Luwawu Cabarrot’s number:

Goran Dragić will wear No. 7️⃣ pic.twitter.com/7XufOtsr7h

— Chicago Bulls (@chicagobulls) August 2, 2022

We’ll see what kind of impact Dragic has on the Bulls this upcoming season. I’m not expecting much, but the 20 minutes per game promise Dragic claimed the Bulls made him is awfully interesting.

But good to see him and buddy Nikola Vucevic together. Continuity, man.

Chicago Bulls center Nikola Vucevic hanging out with his new teammate Goran Dragić. pic.twitter.com/0QlnUOObwq

— Daniel Greenberg (@ChiSportUpdates) August 2, 2022

3. Nooooooch

I don’t know why, but this came across my timeline

Never forget that Andres Nocioni had one of the best playoff series ever by a role player as a scorer in 2006. Against the champion Heat he averaged 22 PPG on 56/48/86 in 6 games, being the #11 scorer in the 06 playoffs. He had a great jumper both spotting up and off the dribble pic.twitter.com/74zzAC7oV0

— Mavs/Magic Draft (@MavsDraft) August 1, 2022

This took me down a rabbit hole. From 2006-2008 Andres Nocioni averaged 13.3 points and 5.3 rebounds while shooting 45.2 percent from the field, 37.7 percent from three and 83.0 from the line.

We’ve talked on the CHGO Bulls podcast a lot about which former Bulls who would be an awesome fit on today’s team. Nocioni is the forgotten man. The Bulls absolutely need a 6-foot-7 forward who can defend at a high level and shoot it.

Anyone on the present day team have that kind of potential…?

4. Pat Williams content week

A lot of good P-Dub content this week including, of course, my story on his one-handed jumper and Friday’s CHGO podcast with Mark Karantzoulis and I discussing Williams’ outlook.

Jackson Frank, an awesome NBA writer of various platforms across the internet, had some interesting takes on Williams’ potential and upside.

Because we Bulls fans/analysts/writers focus on the team so deeply every day, it’s always good to see writers who cover the league from a national perspective share their opinions on the Bulls.

Definitely worth the read.

Wrote about Patrick Williams, who I think is in a good spot to capably fill a critical role for the Bulls in Year 3.

On his offensive allure, defensive prowess and the key steps forward on both ends: https://t.co/Q5qowZu7xC

— Jackson Frank (@jackfrank_jjf) August 3, 2022

More to come next week…

5. DeMar’s Shoe Deal

Fresh off making All-NBA second team, Chicago Bulls star DeMar DeRozan is signing a new four-year deal with Nike that keeps him as the featured face of Kobe Bryant’s iconic line, sources tell @TheAthletic @Stadium.

— Shams Charania (@ShamsCharania) August 1, 2022

It’s impossible not to see that DeRozan has modeled his game after Bryant (and Michael Jordan), so continuing this deal and partnership makes perfect sense, especially when you consider how much DeRozan has looked up to Bryant.

DeMar DeRozan reflects on his friendship with Kobe Bryant: “He was everything to me” pic.twitter.com/HH9bsRGnMl

— Bulls Talk (@NBCSBulls) January 27, 2022

Kobe’s widow Vanessa Bryant called out the report, saying the face of the brand will not change. But it seems more like a criticism of semantics than anything else.

DeRozan has spoken at length about his love and admiration for Bryant, so this is a huge honor for him to be one of the featured faces of Bryant’s shoe deal and legacy.

“For me personally, he meant everything to me basketball wise; that’s well documented. A mentor of mine. A friend of mine,” DeRozan said of Bryant.