On April 14–173 days ago, for those hungry for basketball–Indiana put the finishing touches on a horribly disappointing 23-59 Bulls season. That’s when the 2004-05 season began.
In his 66-game tenure as Bulls coach, Scott Skiles publicly challenged his team’s commitment and work ethic, and he and general manager John Paxson all but demanded a strong off-season.
That off-season ended Sunday, with the annual media day set for Monday and double practice sessions starting Tuesday.
As usual, many questions accompany the Bulls to camp. Here are the five most pressing:
How did the off-season commitment go?
“I’d have a hard time believing many other teams had the kind of commitment that we had this summer from our guys,” Skiles said.
Tyson Chandler and Kirk Hinrich were such regulars at the Berto Center that they could have paid rent. Rookies Luol Deng and Ben Gordon are familiar with the building’s after-hours code as well. Management couldn’t convince Eddy Curry to attend as much as it would have liked. But overall, Skiles is pleased.
So what kind of shape is Curry in?
By all accounts, Curry is ready to go. “I’m in shape,” he said.
The laid-back center started his summer typically–slowly. At one point, no one could locate him as he ventured to Texas for a family reunion. But Curry attacked the latter half of the off-season with a vengeance and is at 285 pounds, the weight at which management requested he report to camp.
How is Chandler’s back?
Chandler turned 22 Saturday, which makes the back problems that limited him to 35 games last season all the more troubling. An intense off-season training regimen put 20 pounds of muscle on Chandler’s frame, mostly on his shoulders and midsection. But even with Chandler at 240 pounds, management limited his full-court contact until recently.
Are the rookies ready?
They’d better be, because they’re going to play a lot. Draftees Deng and Gordon and free-agent signee Andres Nocioni will likely compose two-fifths of the starting lineup, with Deng or Nocioni logging plenty of reserve minutes. Nocioni played a complementary role on the Argentine team that won a gold medal in Athens. Expect that to change with the Bulls.
Is Scottie Pippen retiring?
An announcement could come during media day. If not, the Bulls might eventually waive the future Hall of Famer. They seek his roster spot. Bulls fans merely seek a better record.
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Edited by the sports staff of RedEye.
