S3 1982 Chicago Bulls Preseason Presser

[logpmess]

Good afternoon.

We appreciate all of you for joining us at this press conference. Let's get right into our vision of the past, present, and future.

Last season we saw more of the same. I felt like we had a really good defensive team. Unfortunately, scoring points is a necessity to win in the league. We anticipated being on the bubble of a playoff team. We were able to make the playoffs, but got ourselves eliminated in the first round. I like our pieces, but we are clearly missing something to push us into a real contender. Overall, the season was more of a failure than a success. I had a vision of winning a playoff series and it never happened.

We were hoping to get a big in the draft, but they were all taken by the time our pick came around. We did however land Craig Hodges. The rookie out of Long Beach State will be able to learn on our current roster without any expectation from him.

In the offseason, we had some players leave. Our focus was on our power forward, Edgar Jones. We resigned him for higher than we had hoped, but we are happy to have him back. He can be a key contributor as we continue forward. We were also able to sign Kenny Higgs, who we are excited to have as a veteran presence. He will be the primary backup at the point.

Hodges, man. He really put in the effort in camp this year. We saw a huge boost in his abilities. By signing Higgs, Hodges doesn't have to contribute, but that kid has some fight in him. He really wants to be a great player in this league.

Overall, we lost some depth. We have a solid core of guys, especially defensively. We need to find some scoring or this team will not work. The goal is either reset completely or make a big move to acquire a difference maker. We are still a bubble playoff team, but we want more than that this year.

With that, I open to floor to your questions.

[greepleairport]

Hey Mr. logpmess, sounds like the vibe in Chicago is...to hang tight. How is the mood in the locker room? Are any players asking for a trade, or resenting you for putting them on the market?

[Mike Lowry]

There's always a reasonable next step in this game, right?
Sounds like you're on the verge of a limbo situation.
Ton of teams already sold off ahead of you.
I know you mentioned looking for scoring.
What kind of players are you targeting to get better?
Or what kind of returns do you expect if you sell off?

[NY_Magic_Garrett]

Hi, thanks for the time. To your point, some new faces in the locker room this year but still a young core. Who would you say the leader of this team is? Who needs to step up to get you over that playoff hump?


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[logpmess]

Hey Mr. logpmess, sounds like the vibe in Chicago is...to hang tight. How is the mood in the locker room? Are any players asking for a trade, or resenting you for putting them on the market?

Our players are happy with their roles but not happy with the results. There is a buzz in the locker room. People are on edge that they could get shipped at anytime. No one is asking for a trade, but they all know no one is safe due to the lack of playoff success.

[logpmess]

There's always a reasonable next step in this game, right?
Sounds like you're on the verge of a limbo situation.
Ton of teams already sold off ahead of you.
I know you mentioned looking for scoring.
What kind of players are you targeting to get better?
Or what kind of returns do you expect if you sell off?

With being a team in limbo, our picks hold some value. We are one injury away from not being a playoff team, which would net a lotto pick. We could package two picks and points to get a top level scorer.

If we decide to blow it up, we have some players that I think should garner a future first. Not much more. We also don't think it would be a top lottery pick either, but still they could make a difference for teams.

[logpmess]

Hi, thanks for the time. To your point, some new faces in the locker room this year but still a young core. Who would you say the leader of this team is? Who needs to step up to get you over that playoff hump?


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With such a young core, we don't have a defined leader offensively. Steve Johnson really is pushing for more touches but is still too young to really lead this team. Although not one of our superstars, when we resigned Edgar Jones, we put the team in his hands. As our first significant commitment to a player, his deal has made him step up in the locker room and really hold people accountable.

In years past, we haven't had anybody average in over the teens in PPG. We can't keep up with some of these offenses at that rate. We need offensive output. We have a couple of guys that have stepped up this season, but they are not the elite level of scoring that is seen in the playoffs. Hopefully we can add another piece to really compete for a title.