Chicago Bulls Preseason Press Conference
Posted: Mon Mar 30, 2026 3:40 pm
Welcome to the Bulls Pre-season Press conference. Things will be looking quite different in Chicago this year than last.
Last year we knew we were in a rebuild, so we did not have high expectations for win totals. As expected we landed with a high lottery pick. Unfortunately in the lottery, we were jumped by the Knicks which dropped us to 5 as the incoming Charlotte Hornets were guaranteed the 4th pick.
In the expansion draft, we put up some players of mixed skills and contracts. Ultimately, Lewis Lloyd was selected by Charlotte and he was taken from our team. We decided to put him on the block, because his value compared to salary was high. By getting rid of his salary, we had more wiggle room in the upcoming free agency.
In the draft, we were approached by the Nets to acquire a genuine superstar in his prime. Our team has been building pieces but truly lacked a premiere scorer. Now with Eddie A. Johnson, we have that player. We did have to give up some assets including the number 5 pick (Dan Majerle) and Scott Skiles. Skiles was difficult to part with. He is super undeveloped but he will blossom into a pretty good point guard offensively. However, with the build of our team, we decided to take a chance on greatness. With our second 1st round pick, we needed a point guard and drafted Avery Johnson. He was already developed as a passer and ball handler, so he was able to either be a starter or backup immediately.
We landed some players in RFA, but they were matched. We figured Vern Fleming would be matched on such a team friendly contract, but we were disappointed when Jay Humphries was matched without a response for negotiations for a sign and trade. That is the beast of RFA for the winning outside bid, so we move on.
We struck out in round one of UFA despite throwing a lot of money around. We had a pretty solid team heading into round 2 of UFA, so we needed to solidify some backups and veteran presence on the bench. James Edwards, Kyle Macy, and John Lucas bring our team depth at varying rates of pay. We have a well rounded team with the exception of starting point guard.
Our starting lineup will be:
C - John Koncak
PF - Roy Tarpley
SF - Eddie A Johnson
SG - Craig Hodges
PG - Avery Johnson
We like the make up of this group. Our biggest asset though is our depth. Our second group will be Olden Polynice, Nick Vanos, Scottie Pippen, Gerald Wilkins, and John Lucas. Even outside of that, we have James Edwards, Harold Pressley, and Kyle Macy who can step into the game and contribute. We have high expectations this year. Playoffs are a must or this is an unsuccessful season. We are looking to make a deep run into the playoffs and the championship is attainable, but I know that things would have to fall perfectly to have that happen.
With that I will open it up to questions.
Last year we knew we were in a rebuild, so we did not have high expectations for win totals. As expected we landed with a high lottery pick. Unfortunately in the lottery, we were jumped by the Knicks which dropped us to 5 as the incoming Charlotte Hornets were guaranteed the 4th pick.
In the expansion draft, we put up some players of mixed skills and contracts. Ultimately, Lewis Lloyd was selected by Charlotte and he was taken from our team. We decided to put him on the block, because his value compared to salary was high. By getting rid of his salary, we had more wiggle room in the upcoming free agency.
In the draft, we were approached by the Nets to acquire a genuine superstar in his prime. Our team has been building pieces but truly lacked a premiere scorer. Now with Eddie A. Johnson, we have that player. We did have to give up some assets including the number 5 pick (Dan Majerle) and Scott Skiles. Skiles was difficult to part with. He is super undeveloped but he will blossom into a pretty good point guard offensively. However, with the build of our team, we decided to take a chance on greatness. With our second 1st round pick, we needed a point guard and drafted Avery Johnson. He was already developed as a passer and ball handler, so he was able to either be a starter or backup immediately.
We landed some players in RFA, but they were matched. We figured Vern Fleming would be matched on such a team friendly contract, but we were disappointed when Jay Humphries was matched without a response for negotiations for a sign and trade. That is the beast of RFA for the winning outside bid, so we move on.
We struck out in round one of UFA despite throwing a lot of money around. We had a pretty solid team heading into round 2 of UFA, so we needed to solidify some backups and veteran presence on the bench. James Edwards, Kyle Macy, and John Lucas bring our team depth at varying rates of pay. We have a well rounded team with the exception of starting point guard.
Our starting lineup will be:
C - John Koncak
PF - Roy Tarpley
SF - Eddie A Johnson
SG - Craig Hodges
PG - Avery Johnson
We like the make up of this group. Our biggest asset though is our depth. Our second group will be Olden Polynice, Nick Vanos, Scottie Pippen, Gerald Wilkins, and John Lucas. Even outside of that, we have James Edwards, Harold Pressley, and Kyle Macy who can step into the game and contribute. We have high expectations this year. Playoffs are a must or this is an unsuccessful season. We are looking to make a deep run into the playoffs and the championship is attainable, but I know that things would have to fall perfectly to have that happen.
With that I will open it up to questions.