A Look At The Bulls

Now that the dust has settled on the free agent market and the Bulls have filled out their roster with the signing of Keith Bogans, how are their chances looking this year?

Let's be real. The NBA champion is likely to come out of the Western Conference, or else to be the Miami Heat. So the Bulls' version of "championship" would be successful journey to the Eastern Conference finals. So how do they stack up against the other teams?

Their average age is 26.1. Average height 6-7. Average weight 225. Starters averaged 77 points.

Cleveland Cavaliers are the reigning champs of the Bulls' Central Division. Their vitals are a shade worse than ours, at 26.5/6-6/216. They have the edge in coaching experience, with former Coach of the Year Byron Scott at the helm, versus the Bulls' respected but untested Tom Thibodeau. Their starting five averaged just 56 points, and Antawn Jamison performed like a man spooked once he was traded to Clevelend. The LeBronless Cavs will be plagued with the same Jordan Withdrawal that sank the Bulls into oblivion in 1999.

Boston Celtics upset the Cavs last year, and fell one awful game shy of winning it all last year. Their starters' career average scoring mark is 88. But last year? 76. Starters average age? 31. These guys are basketball old, sputtering through the season before getting hot at playoff time. Don't count on them reaching 50 wins again, no matter what level Rajon Rondo ascends to at the point. And just in case, there's the matter of their former coach now sitting on the Bulls' pine with extensive knowledge of their weaknesses, also vacating the fundamental defensive leadership that helped aging legs keep scores low.

Orlando Magic roll a tall lineup onto the floor. On paper Vince Carter outmatches Kyle Korver at the shooting guard, and the sight of Rashard Lewis running around at the three point line will give Carlos Boozer the cold sweats. The Bulls outclass the Magic with Derrick Rose at the point and the erratic talent of Luol Deng at small forward. Two questions matter: Was it the presence of Joakim Noah that limited Magic center Dwight Howard to just 12 points in their first meeting, and his absence that allowed Howard to explode in the second? And will Thibodeau install the same impenetrable defense that Boston used last year to stymie the high-powered Orlando squad in the playoffs?

Playing in the East's weakest division, the Bulls need to assert themselves against Scott Skiles' upstart Milwaukee Bucks and find chemistry quickly with a lot of new parts. It's hard to imagine them achieving this in time to overcome the Atlanta Hawks in the regular season. If they slide to the fourth or fifth seed in the conference, then the road to the East finals goes through Miami - meaning that health permitting, the Bulls can look forward to a first-round series win followed by a shock-and-awe experience against the Heat to close out the year.

Watch out for us in 2012 though!