by Sham Smith, Bulls.com
But such a team would not have been possible without the James Harden trade, which many called a terrible move. However, it did net them Victor Oladipo, who is already a dynamite player on a rookie contract, so that extra space allowed them to sign Spencer Hawes and Goran Dragic -- both all-stars last year -- and despite an expensive tax situation, the Bulls were able to ink a sign and trade deal that sent Danilo Gallinari to the Nets for Carmelo Anthony. Gallinari is a hard piece to part with...he's a small forward with tremendous size and athleticism, but as far as sign and trades go, Carmelo was an all-star last year, too, and a scoring phenom. With these additions, the Bulls are poised to have a very strong inside scoring game, and it appears that was their plan on draft day. They traded up to get the 16th overall pick in the draft (another move made possible by the Harden trade), and they selected John Guy out of Maryland. He's a young, athletic, and PBSL ready center. The Bulls see great promise in him, and I sat down with John to introduce him a little more to the Bulls fans.
Welcome to Chicago, John. It's great to have you here.
Thank you, Sham. It means a lot to me to be here.
Why don't you start out by telling us a little about yourself?
Well, despite having one of the most regular names imaginable, I've got a reputation as kind of a weird dude. There aren't many 7 foot tall dudes in upstate New York, so I think all the attention I got for sticking out in high school kind of helped that reputation.
I can see that, but what kind of things cemented that reputation for you?
Ah, it's the little things. I've got a lot of rituals and superstitions I'm pretty OCD about. It's helped in practice since I have to do things in multiples of 5 or 3. Like, I won't stop a drill until I've made 15 free throws in a row and 15 shots from alternating sides of the basket in a row. 15...it's the lowest common denominator.
You wore 53 in college, but gracefully ceded that number to incoming star Center, Spencer Hawes. Will that mess up your game?
Nah, it was the right thing to do. 5 plus 3 equals 8, and 8 times 5 is 40, so I can still fit that into my schema.
Anything else that stands out?
I know a lot of people swear by peanut butter and jelly sandwiches as a pre-game snack, but I always, ALWAYS, eat a couple of sardine and mustard sandwiches before every game. My teammates on the Terrapins all hated it because of the smell.
Well, you did average over 20 points and 8 rebounds a game, so if it ain't broke, don't fix it.
(Laughs) Exactly.
So tell us a little about your game. Your scouting report shows that you already have a very strong inside game on a pro level.
Yeah, I hope so. I like playing down low, and I think it'll be a real good fit on a team like Chicago. I really want to spend some time on my rebounding. The guys here are a lot bigger, more fierce, and I think I really gotta work harder on getting on the glass to really maximize my game inside. Luckily, I'm surrounded with a lot of guys here who can rebound like nobody's business, so I'm looking forward to hitting practice and training camp to see if I can make some strides there.
You mentioned some of that talent. With Hawes, Thomas Robinson, and Jared Sullinger all acquired, there are a lot of big men to compete with. Are you at all worried about getting enough touches in the season?
It's not something I'm really worried about. I'm happy to be on a team that looks like it could make some waves, but that doesn't mean I'm complacent taking a back seat. I'm going to put in my work, and I think it'll show enough to get me minutes. If it doesn't, I'm just going to work harder, but I guarantee I'm going to come out of training camp a lot stronger than I came in, and I'm really looking to turn some heads.
We'd love to see that. One question that I always like to ask...what would you be doing if you weren't in PBSL?
To be honest, I don't know. I had my sights set on basketball very early on, and though there were no guarantees, I was top 100 out of high school. Barely, but still top 100, and I knew I could push harder in college, especially if I stayed all four years and really let my game develop.
You did end up getting your degree. History, right?
That's right. I was more interested in history itself than any kind of history career. I think it's important to know. Maybe teach if it came down to it or get involved with politics and activism.
Well, just don't bring that up around Spencer.
(Laughs) I won't.
Anyway, last question. I just want to get a sense of what you think of your time in Chicago so far? What have been your favorite things that you've seen and done?
It's been great. It's a beautiful city. I went to see the bean. Is that cliche? I don't know. I thought it was cool. Spent a lot of time on the beach, too. There's a dog park on Montrose Beach that's great. I'm a big dog person. I've got two Chesapeake Bay Retrievers, Rocky and Mo, and they like to go down there. But yeah, it's a big city, but everyone's been really welcoming, and I'm excited to be here.
Again, we're looking forward to seeing what you can do on the court. We'll have to work on a nickname though...
No, thanks. My regular name is just fine.
