Lottery Luck

By: Chad Ruter

I admit, when the logo for the Chicago Bulls wasn’t revealed in the envelope that said “9″ on it, I started running around my apartment like a sugar-crazed five-year-old. The announcers re-iterated a fact that I already knew: the Bulls would be picking somewhere in the Top-3. I dropped to my knees and begged God not to leave us at three. Yes, it would be great to stun the odds and choose third, but at the same time it would be the ultimate sucker punch to the groin. With two players towering above the rest talent wise, a pick in the Top-2 would be franchise changing – although a third pick would result in either O.J. Mayo or Eric Gordon.

When the “3″ envelope opened, and I saw a spec of gray from the fur of the Minnesota Timberwolves, my blood pressure plummeted to normal, while my rate of excitement did the inverse. Even in the 12 or so seconds before the opening of the second to last envelope, I again asked God for some assistance. I absolutely DID NOT want the No. 1 pick in the draft. In a draft where the first two players are neck and neck, you would rather have the second pick so that the team that’s number one does all the work for you. Take whichever guy is left, and you can’t be second guessed.

Instead, the Miami Heat’s logo was revealed at No. 2, leaving the Bullies with the No. 1 overall pick in the NBA Draft come June. At just a 1.7% chance, it was an absolute blessing to win the lottery. But at the same time, its a curse. Names like Michael Olowokandi, Derrick Coleman, and Mark Workman started flying through my head. Guys who were tabbed as the No. 1 pick, but who turned out to be a bucket of yuck.

But that can’t happen this year, can it? Michael Beasley and Derrick Rose are head and shoulders above the rest of the class. The sleek shooting scoring machine that can play forward, rebound, and run the floor, or the pure point guard with an ability to penetrate against any defender, make his teammates better, and defend any guard on the floor. Which one do you take??

To me, it’s simple – you take Derrick Rose. Unless you have a guy named Kobe or LeBron on your team, you need a strong point guard to be a successful team. Kirk Hinrich doesn’t qualify. A guard can be broken down into four basic categories: shooter, scorer, passer, defender. Hinrich ranks above average in just one of those (defender), while he ranks wayyyyyyy below average in the other three. The Bulls overpaid him, and should almost treat his contract as a sunk cost unless they can trade him.

Rose brings forth a leadership ability that no current Chicago Bull possesses. If they would’ve had him in 2007, the Bulls might have stood a chance in the Eastern Conference semifinals. Instead, they crumbled – looking toward a teammate and begging someone else to take over the game. Rose is that kind of guy. He may not be the one that scores the bucket, but you know he’s going to have the ball, and he’ll find the right person to be taking the shot.

Michael Beasley is a beast too. Don’t get me wrong, I think he’s going to have a solid NBA career. But the more I think about it, the more questions I have. How tall is he? And don’t bullshit me with this 6′10″ nonsense. He’s 6′8″ at best, and would get murdered against the top half of the power-forwards in the NBA. The Bulls already have four PF’s, and despite Beasley being better than all of them skill set wise, he might just be too small to play on the defensive end. And if he can’t play the four, is he fast enough to play the three? See what I mean? Question after question.

Rose doesn’t have those questions. He’s plenty tall for the PG position (6′3″ – 6′4″), can play the position on both ends of the floor – all while being a difference maker. He’s going to score 15+ points, dish out 8+ assists, and grab 5+ rebounds every night, and be an impact defender. Can you pass on a guy like that with the number one pick?

Although…the last time they did take a guy named Michael in the first round…