Bulls Aim To Spread Floor With Draft Picks And Signing
By Benjy Lipsman in News on Jul 2, 2013 4:40PM
On Monday, the Bulls introduced their two new draft picks to the media, selected in Thursday night's NBA Draft. In the first round (20th overall), the Bulls drafted New Mexico small forward Tony Snell. With their second round pick, the Bulls grabbed Erik Murphy, a power forward from Florida.
Snell addresses the Bulls' need for outside shooting, as the 6-foot, 7-inch wing knocked down 39 percent of his shots from beyond the three point arc. Bulls GM Gar Forman raved about the selection on ESPN 1000's draft show:
The thing we really liked about Tony is, first of all, he's got the tools you look for in a 2-guard, in that he's 6-7 1/2, he's got a seven-foot wing span. He's got terrific foot speed. He's a good, long, live athlete but along with that, he can shoot the basketball, and he's got a nice, fluid stroke. He shot 39 percent, almost 40 percent from 3. And he's got a skill level handling the ball and pass the ball. He can be a secondary handler; I think he'll be able to play off as he progresses, so all those things kind of stood out to us.
Similar to Jimmy Butler, Snell can play both small forward and shooting guard, but has a better outside shot than Butler. Still to be seen is how well he can defend, but his seven foot wingspan should help.
With their second round pick, the Bulls went for a big man who could also shoot. While Murphy played power forward for the Gators, he also led the SEC in three-point shooting at 45 percent. With that kind of outside shot, Murphy is also expected to help spread the floor while providing more depth on the front line. Nonetheless, we're a bit surprised that the Bulls didn't grab a true center to back up Joakim Noah.
With the free agent negotiating period open as of yesterday, the Bulls wasted no time in further addressing their need to spread the court by adding veteran Mike Dunleavy, who verbally agreed to a two-year deal to join the Bulls. The former Duke star has played 12 years for Golden State, Indiana and Milwaukee. Averaging 11.9 points/game and a lifetime 37.2 percent shooting from downtown, Dunleavy will profile the long range shooting the Bulls need before the rookies see much time on the court. With Dunleavy signing, the Bulls are likely to let Marco Belinelli leave and we expect to see Dunleavy fill a similar role in coach Tom Thibodeau's rotation.
Nazr Mohammed tweeted on Tuesday that he and the Bulls have also come to terms on another one year contract. But the Bulls still have a spot or two to fill in order to round out their roster, as point guard Nate Robinson's status remains up in the air.