If I’m the GM for either Chicago or Miami, I’m trading this pick (No. 1 or 2) for the best package of players & picks I can lay my hands on.

But now I’m wondering how much cap room the Bulls have to sign free agents. If they could snag a midlevel center/pf, then I’d take Rose and then throw out Rose, Gordon, Deng, Noah, and free agent.

Imagine how you could run the floor with that line up! If the free agent was Elton Brand you could also run a solid half court game.

Or Denver wants to trade K-mart so unload hughes or Kirk or somebody to get him for a couple of years and draft a big guy before he is at the end of his rope. I just feel like, and could be wrong, that there are more options than the draft to pick up a proved solid inside player, whereas there are not as many chances to grab a quality guard.

You and I have debated the back court/front court thing before and I think that’s something that is debatable to the end of time. But my feeling is that right now, the way offenses are running and the way the league is headed, you need a guard more than a center.

Also, I shoudl point out that I saw very little of Beasley and a lot of Rose, so that may explain why I’m sold on Rose more than Beasely.

Trey, let me poke at your Kirk Hinrich comment a little bit. This kind of goes back to our PG vs. C debate from a while ago but I’ll try to keep it grounded.

What exactly does “championship-level” entail? NBA champions featured point guards like Jason Williams, Derek Fisher, Ron Harper, Kenny Smith and Avery Johnson. If you isolated those players, no one could make a case for them as being “championship-level.”

Sure, stars make up for their colleagues’ short-comings. But, to me, it’s all circumstancial. Can the Bulls win a championship with Derrick Rose? Assuming he’s “all that,” sure they could. But then the next step would be getting complementary players — specifically a big man.

Can the Bulls win a championship with Michael Beasley? Assuming he’s “all that,” sure they could. And the difference therein is that, because of Beasley’s position, he puts them closer to that goal.

You don’t look to cook a great dish by continually adding salt. You’ve gotta throw some pepper in there and see what happens. And, for me, Beasley is that much needed balance.

So with that framework, what does being a championship-level player entail?

As for the pick, I think this goes back to the Changing of the Gaurd peice that I wrote a while back. I’d take the PG bc you know he can change your team and provide leadership and the ball is always in his hands.

but there are other reasons:

- Kirk H is not a championship team point guard
- Rose is from Chi town so that draws fans in even more than that Beasely would
- do you want to compete against a miami team that has a wade rose backcourt? no one could gaurd those two!
- beasley is no larry legend. the karl malone comparison is perfect. to me he is a funny size. 6’8 but big and lumbering. he’s strong, but not so strong that he could muscle up to guys at the 4 position in the NBA. he could be like amare stodomire (sp), but i dont see him as that athletic.
- lastly, the mentioned on PTI that you could hire John Callipari as the Bulls coach and then take Rose with the first pick. Kinda makes sense.

just my thoughts.

Yeah, I definitely see where you’re coming from. I agree that the #1 pick separates the David West case from a potential Beasley pick. And you’re right, a top pick should be a dominant big or someone with multiple facets to their game.

You have to remember that I’m a Bulls fan. I love self-deprecation so bring on the disappointments. I will say that I’m willing to settle for an “Elton Brand-esque” #1 at this point.

Know that I wasn’t being critical of your decision to move Beasley around to different positions within various line-ups for the Bulls, I was just acknowledging that I see him in a similar way shifting between different spots based on an y number of factors in a typical NBA game.

That said, I do believe that he’s a tweener in the NBA … not like Larry Bird who was just a phenominal multi-dimensional Basketball Player, regardless what position he played … but, perhaps, very similar to David West (which is a good comparison you’re making, IMO).

The problem is David West wasn’t picked in either of the top two positions in his draft year, in part, because of what I’m suggesting is also going to effect Michael Beasley at the NBA level … i.e. Yes, he’s going to be a very good NBA player, especially on the offensive end; but he is NOT going to be a DOMINANT player in this league, which is ideally what you are looking for when you’re exercising your pick that high in the Draft.

From my personal perspective, I believe an NBA player who is NOT a back-to-the-basket BIG MAN needs to be able to handle the ball for his team, score himself by slashing to the rim off the bounce and being a deft passer to create a number of easy scoring opportunities for his lesser-skilled teammates. Although I have a lot of respect for Beasley’s ability to score the ball himself in the NBA, I don’t see him having this type of multi-dimensional ability to effect the game on a nightly basis, for example, when his shot is not working for him.

First, listing where Beasley would line-up wasn’t an attempt to write-off him being a “tweener.” I was simply trying to show where he’d fit in a rotation. Since he is a good talent, he can fill different roles depending on who’s on the floor with him.

I’d give you a similar description if I were looking to draft LeBron James. “Play LeBron at the 2 when Hinrich and Deng are on the floor,” or “put LeBron at the 3 when Hinrich and Gordon are on the floor.”

Similarly, I would suggest to “put Tim Duncan at the 5 when Tyrus Thomas is playing” and “put TD at 4 when Noah’s on the floor” if we were looking to draft Timmy Duncan. Sorry if i didn’t make that clear enough but the Bulls need a big man and that’s what Beasley is to me.

It may be a little counterintuitive of me to say that I’m drafting him as a big and then turn around and say he’s versatile. But I’m definitely shoving him into the post and anything else is gravy for me.

Secondly, all of the traits you gave Derrick Rose could easily be applied to Beasley. From a position standpoint, I think Beasley matches Rose in all categories (with the exception of size which I think is negligible). Sure, leadership may be an issue but objectively, Rose hasn’t displayed much besides “follow me” or “leadership by example,” in my opinion. Not saying he’s not a leader but poise while running an offense is distinct from tangible leadership traits.

Your Larry Bird analogy is definitely valid when guys like us are thinking about building contenders. However, I don’t see a lot of people drafting intangibly. “Will to win” and “making teammates better” usually isn’t considered nowadays. Last year, Bogut and Bynum got chosen over Sean May after May led his team to the National Championship. Year before that you see Dwight Howard chosen over Emeka Okafor who is a high-class guy that led his team to the National Championship. And before that, LeBron and Darko over Carmelo. Same issue there.

It’s not fair to draft on potential alone and if we could have it my way, I’d draft by the parameters you’ve set. Now back to Beasley, what he’s displayed to me is a mean-streak, a high offensive IQ, an incredible ability to score and he’s a glass-eater. I saw most of his televised games and every time he grabbed a rebound, he could hear the “TWANG” of the impact of hand against leather.

Please excuse the comparison but I can see him developing into a David West. West faced the same exact issues when he prepared to enter the league. They’re in exactly the same position except Beasley’s body is a lot more “NBA ready.” Do you think someone like that has the potential to win a championship?

From what I’ve seen from Beasley to this point, it looks like he’s a tweener who can really score.

Experience tells me that this type of player isn’t necessarily the best fit for a team with long term championship aspirations in the NBA.

Doesn’t mean that he isn’t a good or even great player … just that I am always concerned about how a player like this … e.g. not a PF, not a SF, not a shooter, not a slasher, not a defender, not a rebounder, not a shot-blocker, just a flat-out scorer, AT HIS HEIGHT and with his LEVEL OF EXPLOSIVE QUICKNESS … is going to play out in the NBA, long term.

If I may, let me give a comparison which I think is appropriate.

Larry Bird played Center at ISU.

Larry Bird was a multi-dimensional player … but did not have a set position when projecting him onto an NBA roster, at his HEIGHT and with his LEVEL OF EXPLOSIVE QUICKNESS.

However, Larry Bird had another quality about him that told the trained observer (Red Auerback), in advance, that he was going to be an All-Time NBA great, REGARDLESS what position he played when he got into the League because he (i) Could do so many things at an exceptional level, (ii) Played the Game with an exceptional LEVEL OF ENERGY, (iii) was the consummate WINNER, propelled HIS Indiana State team much further into the NCAA tournament than they deserved to go because of HIS BASKETBALL ABILITY, HIS WILL TO WIN and HIS ABILITY TO MAKE HIS TEAMMATES BETTER by creating easy scoring opportunities for them and setting a great example for them.

Do you see any of these attributes in Michael Beasley?

Karl Malone was a great PF over the course of his NBA career BUT … I would never have used the No. 1 Draft Pick on a Power Forward like the Mailman, no disrespect intended.

Power Forwards, in general, are just not as valuable to a championship NBA team as are other position players.

Now … if Beasley could actually project as a Wing player in the NBA, for example, then I’d be singing a different tune.

But, IMO, to have Beasley matched-up 1v1 against the likes of Lebron James and Kobe Bryant isn’t going to get the job done for his team, in the playoffs, at this level of competition.

In my case … it’s about the WINNING of championships … not the entertainment value of the aesthetics of amassing regular season W’s.

Personally, I would either (i) Trade the No. 1 pick this year for a slew of other assets OR (ii) Look long and hard at taking Derrick Rose if, when I evaluated him in-person, I saw him as someone who could lead my team to an NBA championship one day in the not-too-distant future, as the Point Guard (PG) of my team, given his QUICKNESS, EXPLOSIVE ATHLETICISM, SIZE, STRENGTH, LEADERSHIP and SKILL SET (Offensively, Defensively & in terms of Rebounding), at that position.

PS. If you would have answered my initial query, straight-up, with a simple … Michael Beasley is the Starting 4-Man on my Bulls team with Hinrich (1), Gordon (2), Deng (3) and Noah (5) beside him … then, although I might disagree with one or two of your other player choices … I would have said something different in my reply than to see him as a “tweener” who can score a lot but not give your team much more production and stability than that over the course of his career.