John Paxson: Otto Porter trade the logical next step for a rebuild heading in the right direction

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The Bulls still aren’t going to put a definite timeline on their rebuild, now two years young and not really any better off than it was a year ago. But John Paxson and Gar Forman believe they took the next logical step toward building a winner by acquiring forward Otto Porter Jr. prior to Thursday’s NBA trade deadline.

Paxson was candid in his statements that the Bulls were realistic about where they stand in the free agency landscape, both this upcoming summer and in 2020. Perhaps last year’s decision to give Jabari Parker $20 million late in free agency after striking out elsewhere was a lesson learned, that being unrealistic can lead to unused money that needs to be spent somewhere. While Paxson did admit that having a seat at the table with the Kevin Durants and the Kawhi Leonards is “what we’re aspiring to,” the franchise isn’t in a current position for that to become a reality.

“We’ve understood that process we’re in right now is hoping to get to that point but we also believe that the draft is very important in order to build to get to there,” Paxson said in response to whether the franchise’s inability to pull free agents in the NBA’s third biggest market was a concern. “I’m confident in our ability to get there because we’ve done it before and we understand that as painful as it is for our fans and everybody else, that we have to remain patient and continue to constantly make the decisions we’re making.”

So instead they nabbed a legitimate two-way player who prior to his current down year was among the best shooters in basketball. In 2017 he was second to Nikola Jokic in effective field goal percentage among players averaging 9 shots per game, and last season only he and Steph Curry had effective field goal percentages of 58 percent or better and averaged 1.5 steals. He also has the ability to play power forward – he has played 36 percent of his minutes this season at the 4 – which will give the Bulls much-needed positional flexibility.

Gar Forman said Porter was a player the Bulls had checked in on a few different times over the last year. Washington’s disastrous 2-9 start followed by John Wall’s season-ending surgery signaled a team looking to sell and, perhaps more importantly, get under the luxury tax. But it wasn’t until John Wall’s freak accident at home resulted in a torn Achilles that the Wizards get into full rebuild mode and talks with the Bulls for Porter picked up. The deal moved quickly enough that both Bobby Portis and Jabari Parker were suited up and ready to play in Wednesday’s game against the Pelicans until they were notified about 30 minutes before tip that they were members of the Wizards.

“We were able in our minds to make a deal where we added a player who fits our timeline, 25 years old, fits a position that we’ve been looking for and has versatility in terms of the way the game is going,” Paxson said. “For us, this was consistent with the direction we chose. We feel really good about it. We’re going to stay committed to the long term and what we’re trying to build with some sustainability. We feel Otto fits that mold.”

And while it was hardly surprising, Paxson gave head coach Jim Boylen a vote of confidence, citing the job he’s done as a teacher and also keeping players accountable while maintaining an open line of communication. Despite the Bulls’ 7-23 record since Boylen took over on Dec. 4 and a handful of embarrassing home losses, Paxson said he “absolutely” believes Boylen will be the head coach next season – when asked, Paxson also shot down the notion that the Bulls not wanting to pay a third head coach played in any part in that expectation.

“We feel he’s doing the right things. He’s trying to get our guys to understand what being a professional is, and to play hard every night and practice hard every day,” Paxson said. “So we’re doing fine with Jim. Jim’s been great in terms of communicating every single day. We’re on a good page there.”

So with a head coach they believe in, four young starters with potential in tow and a likely top-5 draft pick, Paxson believes the Bulls are where they’re supposed to be. Myriad injuries to all seven of the Bulls’ top rotation players halted what could have been an improved record, but the reality is they’re 12-42, have lost 16 of 18 and haven’t showed that much chemistry being able to play successfully with one another.

There’s serious work to be done before the Bulls are able to start thinking about a timeline for competing.

For now they’re content in bringing in a 3 and D wing that both fills a need, meshes with the timeline of their other young prospects and didn’t lock them in financially past a 2121 season in which they could finally sit at the table of a top free agent.

“I can’t pinpoint on a calendar and say by next year or whatever,” Paxson said. “I think we’re all realistic in that as we get through the rest of this year and our expectations that Jim and his staff continue to coach our guys hard, and our guys keep trying to get better, and try to start winning some games if we can.

“But we know that next summer is a big summer for us, like last summer was in terms of the draft primary and then realistically trying to find some vets that fit the group we have. And that’s part of what we evaluate now. We’re evaluating the personalities of our guys, who might fit with them. We understand that that’s ahead of us.”

 

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