Bulls Look Good in Preseason

By Benjy Lipsman in News on Oct 17, 2007 1:35PM

With the baseball season over for both local teams and the Bears falling flat on their face, what's a Chicago sports fans to do? Chicagoist has turned to the Bulls — even if it's only the preseason.

Through three games of their seven-game preseason schedule, we're impressed so far. With last night's 97-76 win over the Washington Wizards, the Bulls stand at 2-1.

Records don't mean much during the exhibition slate — teams give extended minutes to rookies and journeymen looking to make the rosters — but chemistry is everything. And on that front, the Bulls look good, even with a number of guys out of action because of injuries. Ben Gordon, Thabo Sefelosha and Adrian Griffin have yet to see any court time as they nurse bumps and bruises.

One player recovering from injury who finally saw action on Tuesday is Joe Smith, the Bulls biggest free agent signing of the offseason. The 13-year veteran made his Bulls debut, scoring seven points.

The returning squad — including Luol Deng, Andres Nocioni, Kirk Hinrich and Ben Wallace — has looked impressive so far, as have youngsters like Tyrus Thomas and rookie Joakim Noah. Even some of the guys just trying to make the team have shown flashes. John Paxson could have a difficult time deciding who goes when the regular season roster is set.

Can the Bulls actually win the Eastern Conference this year? There are those who expect the them to return to the top of the East for the first time since MJ suited up for the team. There are some who still believe they need a superstar to get to that level ... but we believe Deng may become just that guy. Either way, the Bulls should be an exciting team to watch this season.