2030-2031 Magic Hour

[false9]

The lights dim. The video board transitions from Magic Johnson to a highlight package of last season- Ernie Acuna dropping dimes, Josh Jackson raining 3s, Bronny with thunderous dunks, and Boban weeping with joy lifting the Larry O'Brien trophy and Bill Russell award in his monstrous hands.

GM false9 struts through the curtains with bombastic music playing on the sound system, flanked by a nerdish looking assistant.

phpBB [video]

Hello, friends. It's good to be back! Please help yourselves to the open bar and buffet.

The assistant steps in with a concerned look, whispering into false9's ear.

I'm sorry, I'm being told it's a cash bar and buffet. But please, enjoy yourselves.

When we met last season, I set high expectations for our team. We didn't disappoint. We had our franchise's best season ever- 73 wins in the regular season, a fifteen game winning in the playoffs, capped off by defeating the defending champs in 5 in the Finals.

So how do you follow-up the best season ever? By running it back! We matched Bronny James in RFA, supermaxed Josh Jackson, and brought back the majority of our bench. Chung Mele- enjoy chucking shots in Detroit. Also, in a move with eyes toward the future, we traded Isiah Stewart for Brooks Thompson and a pick swap.

I have the same demands for this team that I did last season- anything less than a championship is a failure. But I'm confident. This is a damn good team. The gameplan and depth chart isn't changing. We're running with this group into the next few seasons at any cost!

The assistant begins to step in again, but false9 stiffarms him aside

That's right, ANY COST!

With that, I'll take your questions.

[garbageman]

Sham Smith, Bulls.com: Your starting lineup proved to be virtually unstoppable last year. Has any team out there made enough leeway to give them a run for your money? Who's on your radar.

[false9]

Sham Smith, Bulls.com: Your starting lineup proved to be virtually unstoppable last year. Has any team out there made enough leeway to give them a run for your money? Who's on your radar.

I'm confident in my group, but always respectful of the opposition.

In Omega, the Bucks always demand attention, between the talent on their team and the GM helming things. The same can be said for the Wizards- for a team in tax jail, Xist has an impressive group.

In Alphaland, it's always a bloodbath. The Bulls, Blazers, Thunder, Spurs, Hawks- you could pick someone out of a hat and I wouldn't be surprised they made it to the Finals.

[Xist2Inspire]

Random Reporter: With pretty much the whole roster from last season returning (sans some scrubs), what lingering concerns, if any, do you have with this team?

[false9]

Random Reporter: With pretty much the whole roster from last season returning (sans some scrubs), what lingering concerns, if any, do you have with this team?

We give up more offensive rebounds than I like and are prone to turnovers. We're not a particularly great free throw shooting team either. All that being said, I'll roll with this group anytime.

[kucoach7]

How do you measure progress coming off such a sucessful season. Which player do you think will surprise people this year?

[false9]

How do you measure progress coming off such a sucessful season. Which player do you think will surprise people this year?

As long as we see the overall team success in line with expectations, I’ll consider that a good sign.

Individually, there are some younger guys I’m curious about- will Bronny continue his rise while sharing the ball with other high usage guys? How will Josh Mitchell do with backup minutes?

[digiskunk]

Swifty Jones, FOX Sports: You actually have one of the Utah Jazz's 1st round draft picks coming up in 2031. How valuable is that to your ballclub heading forward? Do you anticipate getting a top-10 pick with it?

[false9]

Swifty Jones, FOX Sports: You actually have one of the Utah Jazz's 1st round draft picks coming up in 2031. How valuable is that to your ballclub heading forward? Do you anticipate getting a top-10 pick with it?

It’s a nice feather in our cap to have but there’s far too much that could happen in the time leading up to that pick to do any kind of realistic projection. We’re happy to have Brooks Thompson on the team as a result, though.