Stephen R. Sylvanie – USA TODAY Sports
The Chicago Bulls couldn’t really do too much this offseason with very little cap space to make major moves to their roster. However, they did have two draft picks in which they added Tony Snell from New Mexico and Erik Murphy from Florida. So the big questions are, how will the new acquisitions fit into the rotation and will they get any minutes?
Tony Snell is a tall and very long wing player. He is a 6-foot-7 guard, with long arms and can shoot from the perimeter. He averaged 9.2 points, 2.4 rebounds and two assists per game for New Mexico in three years. He also shot 38% from the three-point line, which is his specialty. His last season with New Mexico, he was named Most Valuable Player of the 2013 Mountain West Tournament. He has been compared to Indiana Pacers guard Paul George and San Antonio Spurs forward Kawhi Leonard. If he is anywhere near those quality players, the Bulls got a steal in the draft.
Erik Murphy is a 6-foot-10 power forward, which these days they call a stretch 4. He played all four years for the University of Florida. He is a dangerous shooter beyond the arc for his size. He averaged 7.7 points, 3.7 rebounds, shot 51% from the field and 43.5% from three-point territory for his college career. In his senior season, he earned All-SEC honors after averaging 12.2 points, 5.5 rebounds and an SEC best 45.3% from deep. In other words, he’s a very good shooter. He was a second-round pick from the Bulls, so he might not get on the court this season.
Each of these rookies brings something the Bulls lacked last season, perimeter shooting. Coach Tom Thibodeau usually doesn’t play rookies right away, but as he learned last season it’s good to have quality depth on the roster. The Bulls had so many injuries and they had to rely on guys like Marquis Teague earlier than they anticipated. The rookies might not get much playing time this season because the roster is mostly set, but they will be good rotation players in the future.
Courtney Harden is a Chicago Bulls writer for www.RantSports.com. Follow him on Twitter @courtney110979, “Like” him on Facebook or add him to your network on Google.
