Goodbye, Andres Nocioni

The Chicago Bulls sent Andres Nocioni, Drew Gooden, Michael Ruffin and Cedric Simmons to the Sacramento Kings for Brad Miller and John Salmons.

Andres had this to say, according to the Chicago Sun-Times:

“I’m not surprised,” Nocioni said. “There have been a lot of rumors. I’m all right. I was waiting for this.

“But I don’t feel bad the way I’m leaving. It’s not like I did something wrong. I wasn’t playing my best this season. But I gave everything to this team. I played hard every day whether in practice or in games. I’m a competitive person and I leave this team the best way I could. The only thing I feel bad about is I’m leaving a good team, good players and good coaches. I really enjoyed being with the Bulls. But this is the NBA life. Things like this can happen.”

Drew Gooden had similar thoughts:

“This is a good team that can make a push into the playoffs,” Gooden said of the Bulls. “We all know this is a business but I also look at it as an opportunity.”

There’s an empty space in my heart.  I’ve rented a U-Haul; Sacramento’s only a couple days drive…

Gunnin’ Gordon

I’m going to tell you something that you might not know:

It’s Ben Gordon’s contract year.

But shhh!, don’t tell anyone.  Ben doesn’t know that we’re on to him.

The guy’s a gunner.  He scores and he doesn’t do too much else.  And that’s fine but is it too much to ask him to make an extra pass to the open man?

If Ben gets an outlet pass, he acts as if Derrick Rose isn’t in the building and he brings the ball up himself.  His favorite play seems to be where Drew Gooden sets a pick at the free-throw line extended so that Ben can drive floorside.  He then forces up a shot at  the freethrow line regardless of how many hands are in his face.

Ben, along with Rose, leads the Chicago Bulls in field goal attempts at about 15.5 shots per game.  He’s hitting them at a very good 48.5% clip.  Clearly, he’s their number one option with Luol Deng hurt.  And although his attempts are up from last year’s 14.9 FGA, he’s also playing three more minutes.

So I can’t get too down on Ben but is it too much to ask for two passes per possession?

Vinny Del Negro admitted that there isn’t much offensive variety in his playbook.  Vinny wants to make it simple for a rookie point guard by streamlining plays.  But the Bulls’ offense gets so stagnant at times.  They don’t make the defense move and their offensive tendencies are plainer than Pam from The Office.

Wouldn’t you get bored forcing the same shot over and over again?

Drew Gooden (07-08 Synopsis)

A portrait of an artist with a young beard

 

Drew Gooden — Chicago Bulls Forward
Measurements: 6’10″ – 230 lbs.
Experience: Sixth-year, 27 years old
From: University of Kansas

2007 – 2008 Season Statistics
12.0 points | 44.9% FG | 8.6 rebounds | 1.2 assists | 0.8 blocks | 30.8 minutes

Season Highs
Points: 31 (vs. Atlanta)
Rebounds: 16 (2x)
Defensive Rebounds: 13 (@ Phoenix)
Offensive Rebounds: 8 (2x)
Assists: 5 (2x)
Blocks: 4 (vs. New Jersey)
Steals: 5 (@ Toronto)

What This Year Proved

Drew is your consummate hustle player.  He can crash the boards and set picks with the best of them.  But on a team where every front-court player is a “hustle player,” Drew had to bring his game.

And he did, for the most part.  In the 51 games before getting traded to the Chicago Bulls, Drew tallied averages of 11.3 points, 8.3 rebounds, 1.0 assists and 0.6 blocks. 

In 18 games with the Bulls, Drew averaged 14.0 points, 9.3 rebounds, 1.7 assists and 1.3 blocks.  He did a solid job for Chicago.  In Chicago, he improved his per game shot-blocking drastically, nearly doubling his 0.7 career block average.

His sudden defensive prowess can be attributed to his new role as one of Chicago’s primary big men.  The pressure defense employed last year helped funnel drives to either him or Joakim Noah.  Drew proved that he can be an adequate, if not exemplary, anchor for a thinning Bulls defense.

Quote Him

“Man, I got jealous of the ducktail.  The ducktail started getting more attention than me, so that’s why I cut it off.” — on cutting his old rat-tail

Looking Forward

We know Drew can run the floor and finish.  We know he can hustle and board.  But as the Bulls are currently constructed, he’ll need to do more than that.

When he establishes position, he has a high-percentage baby hook that he hits over most defenses.  Drew gets into trouble when he starts acting like Arvydas Sabonis.  The Big 90 convinces himself that he can hit fadeaway J’s a la Sabonis but they’re bad, off-balance shots and he’s no Paul Hamm.

Drew needs to use his muscle and width to get as many easy inside buckets as he can.  Alternatively, he has some speed and enough determination to beat his man down the floor.  Easy buckets can come his way by looking for an outlet or a quick entry pass in the early offense. 

Because the Bulls haven’t addressed their big man deficiency, Drew Gooden will need to assert himself past his comfort zone.  He doesn’t have second or third option skills but being the most polished big forces him into the equation.

Season Grade: B

Fourteen and 10 is nothing to sneeze at.  Drew performed as well as he’s ever performed in his career.  Although his efforts didn’t translate into more wins, it’s greatly appreciated.  Keep on keepin’ on, especially with that gnarly beard.

Photo credit: Slam Dunk Central