2014-15 NBA Season Preview: Chicago Bulls

Welcome to theScore's preview of the 2014-15 Chicago Bulls. Visit our preseason hub for previews of all 30 NBA teams.

Chicago Bulls

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2013-14

Considering the Bulls got just 10 games out of Derrick Rose and eventually traded away Luol Deng, a 48-34 record was an enormous accomplishment. 

The first-round ouster by the Washington Wizards can be chalked up to a bad tactical matchup and likely exhaustion from a season that saw head coach Tom Thibodeau lean on basically seven players, four of whom ranked in the top 75 in minutes played by season's end. Overworking players is kind of a Thibodeau staple, but you don't hear many complaints and it's tough to argue when the result is the league's No. 2 defense, obstacles be damned.

Joakim Noah took up Rose's mantle as the team's MVP, earning himself Defensive Player of the Year honors. Frontcourt mate Taj Gibson was stellar as always in support, and while Jimmy Butler didn't break out as some projected, he solidified himself as a defensive ace. Meanwhile, retread D.J. Augustin inexplicably averaged 14.9 points and five assists to help keep the offense from being the league's worst (it was 28th).

The absence of Rose loomed over everything, and all eyes will be on him to start the season after a shaky 10-game return, a torn meniscus and an encouraging but flawed FIBA World Cup performance.

Offseason Roundup

Thanks to some savvy offseason maneuvering, it will now be almost impossible for Thibodeau to overwork his players, at least those in the frontcourt. 

The team made a pair of huge interior signings, luring Pau Gasol for cheaper than expected (three years, $22.3 million) and finally bringing Euro prospect Nikola Mirotic stateside (on a three-year, $16.6 million deal). Chicago now boasts the best frontcourt rotation in basketball, with Gibson-Noah, Gibson-Gasol, Gasol-Noah and Mirotic-Noah all swoon-worthy pairings.

The Bulls blundered a little in their handling of a draft-day trade, ultimately giving up two first-round picks and two future seconds for Doug McDermott, but that will matter little if he fills a secondary scoring role as envisioned.

Elsewhere, the team replaced the departed Augustin with Aaron Brooks, retained uber-Bull Kirk Hinrich and freed itself of Carlos Boozer's salary by using the amnesty provision on him.

Additions

PG Aaron Brooks (1/$915K)
*PG Kirk Hinrich (2/$5.6M)
PG E'Twaun Moore (undisclosed)
PF/ C Pau Gasol (3/$22.3M)
PF Nikola Mirotic (3/$16.6M)

*Re-signed

Departures

PF Lou Amundson (waived)
PG D.J. Augustin (free agency)
SG Ronnie Brewer (waived)
PF Carlos Boozer (amnesty)
PG/SG Jimmer Fredette (free agency)
PG Mike James (waived)

2014 Draft

SF/PF Doug McDermott (1st round, 11th overall)
PF Cameron Bairstow (1st round, 49th overall)

It could not have been more clear that the Bulls wanted Dougie Buckets on draft night, and you have to credit them for being aggressive in landing their man. The Bulls traded picks Nos. 16 and 19 to the Denver Nuggets for No. 11, allowing them to land the Creighton standout and National Player of the Year.

While some question McDermott's ultimate position and role in the NBA, he brings one very strong skill that the Bulls desperately need. As we wrote ahead of the draft:

Obviously, you don't put up those kind of prolific scoring numbers (he led the country with 26.7 points a game) without some serious skill. Equal parts intelligence, instinct and range, McDermott can score in a variety of ways, and at worst projects as an elite spot-up shooter. He also flashed better athletic scores than many suggested, enough that the "tweener forward" label might not be a knock so much as a nod to potential versatility, or convince teams he's capable of being a full-time three.

Sound like something the Bulls have been missing the past few years?

In the second round, the Bulls nabbed a depth big man in the Australian, Bairstow. He, too, can score, having averaged 20.4 points on 55.6 percent shooting as a senior at New Mexico.

Starting 5

• PG Derrick Rose
• SG Jimmy Butler
• SF Mike Dunleavy
• PF Pau Gasol
• C Joakim Noah

Breakout Player: Tony Snell

Full disclosure: We almost opted to pass over Snell here and double-down on the Butler shooting breakout that never came last season, strictly because we're mad at Snell for shaving his cornrows off.

As it stands, though, Snell could be primed for an appreciable jump in his sophomore season. He was probably leaned on more than the Bulls would have liked as a rookie, and his performance was as up-and-down as one would expect for a late first-round pick – he averaged 4.5 points in 16 minutes but shot just 38.4 percent.

This summer, Snell put the Bulls on notice that he's improved his offensive game. In five Summer League outings, the 6-foot-7 wing averaged 20 points, four rebounds and 2.8 assists, shooting 46.6 percent from the floor and going 17-of-34 from long range.

Thibodeau will demand defense first for Snell to carve out a larger role, but with the team thin on the wing and in need of 3-point shooting, Snell could be the depth piece that pushes the Bulls over the top.

Season Expectations

"I'm happy for LeBron James. He gets to go home. People are happy over there. But I really hope that we can kick his ass as many times as possible."

That was Noah back in late July, and that quote tells you all you need to know about the 2014-15 Bulls. They stayed afloat when stripped to the bones last season, and they're now healthier, more talented and deeper. This is a team with eyes on the NBA Finals and falling short to Cleveland in the Eastern Conference Finals would be a mild disappointment.

A whole heck of a lot comes down to Rose's health. The knee is in great shape and the World Cup theoretically allowed Rose to work off any rust, but his jumper has yet to come back and he's struggled to finish at the rim. Those are minor concerns, but a healthy Rose at the helm makes this a very dangerous team and a major threat to LeBron James's homecoming.

1 to Follow on Social Media

While most would point to Pau Gasol's endless supply of pictures of himself as evidence to the contrary, the no-nonsense Bulls are a little thin on engaging social media presences. Luckily, Benny The Bull is a 24/7 kind of mascot and brings a fair amount of humor to the standard team PR Twitter proceedings.