SportsDystopia

5 years ago, a Chicago Bulls team that had wandered lost in the NBA wilderness ever since the departures of Michael Jordan, Scottie Pippen and Phil Jackson seemed to be finding its way.  Behind tough coach Scott Skiles, who made and allowed no excuses, and a frisky young core of players, namely Kirk Hinrich, Ben Gordon, Andres Nocioni and Luol Deng, the Bulls finally made the playoffs for the first time since the Jordan era dissolved after ‘98.  They had started the 04/05 season 0-9, but the defense coalesced as the season went along, and Gordon, a rookie, made a habit of 4th quarter offensive outbursts.  Although they lost 4 straight games to the Wizards after opening the playoffs with 2 wins, the general consensus was that this was a team on the rise, with a real future.

In the offseason, GM John Paxson jettisoned Eddy Curry to the Knicks, getting in return non-factor Michael Sweetney, eternally effortless Tim Thomas, and what eventually became the 2nd pick of the 2006 draft.  Paxson’s belief was that the young Bulls just needed time to improve, that by accruing experience, they would become a legitimate title contender.

But the team stagnated the following season, again stumbling through the early months of the season.  Gordon was no longer looking like a first class scorer, as the league had adjusted to his game.  They would rally to close the season once again though, mostly due to the team defense solidifying as the year went on, and made the playoffs for the 2nd straight year, though with only a .500 record.  Like the previous season, they were bounced in the first round in a series that they had ample opportunity to win.

By this point, it was more than clear that the Bulls needed an offensive presence to advance to the next level.  Clear to everyone except Paxson, that is.  Instead of orchestrating a trade to bring a legitimate scorer to Chicago, Paxson flatly refused to deal anyone from the group including Deng, Gordon, Hinrich and Nocioni.  What he did was sign Ben Wallace and trade Tyson Chandler, who had finally started to play with some consistency.  Though the move was hailed in the Chicago media, more knowledgable observers rightly questioned why the team could expect to improve by having essentially swapped out a young defensive-oriented center for an old defensive-oriented center.  Even worse, the Bulls drafted LaMarcus Aldridge, a young big man with real offensive talent, and promptly shipped him to Portland for the rawly athletic Tyrus Thomas.

As was the team’s pattern by this point, a slow start to the 06/07 season led to the Bulls rallying to become a defensive force by season’s end, and they even managed to get out of the first round, sweeping the defending NBA champion Miami Heat and getting revenge for the previous year’s ouster.  But they were unable to handle Detroit in the 2nd round, the team who’s ‘no stars’ philosophy they had been trying to emulate.  The difference, of course, was that Detroit’s collection of ‘no stars’ included actual scoring threats in the likes of Rasheed Wallace, Rip Hamilton and Chauncey Billups.

Yet again, Paxson decided to make no real changes to the roster.

And so by the start of last season, the Bulls had waited for 3 years for their young core to somehow morph into players that they weren’t.  3 years is a long time in basketball.  It’s enough time, for instance, to learn that Ben Gordon can’t play defense or score against a defender who plays him close.  It’s enough time to learn that Kirk Hinrich is not and never will be a first-class point guard because he’s simply not a good distributor.  It’s enough time to learn that Andres Nocioni, a few nice playoff performances aside, is a flawed shooter who’s ceiling had been reached.  It’s enough time to learn that Luol Deng simply isn’t quick enough to score against playoff-caliber defenses, or to defend the league’s elite perimiter players.

Somehow, Paxson never learned these things about the players who had played 250+ games under his watchful eye.  And when the team yet again stumbled out of the gate last season, instead of changing his roster, Paxson decided to change his coach.  The Skiles firing did nothing to change the team’s outlook, because Skiles was never the problem.  Later in the season, a badly aging Ben Wallace was included in a 3-team deal that brought the Bulls an inconsistent Drew Gooden and…wait for it…flawed shooter, Larry Hughes.  When the dust had settled on the 07/08 season, Chicago had finished 33-49.

This offseason, the Bulls lucked into the 1st pick in the draft, and selected Derrick Rose, who represents an immediate upgrade at the point over Hinrich.  Their only other major move (aside from the baffling hiring of Vinny Del Negro as coach) was to resign Luol Deng to a hefty new contract at 6 years for $71 million dollars.  For the 5th season in a row, the team is stumbling out of the starting block.  But there’s no longer a battle-tested coach pulling the strings to turn a collection of mismatched players into a defensive juggernaught.

There’s only that supposed core, also in it’s 5th season, still expected to conquer a hump that now looks alot higher than it did just a few short years ago.  There’s also a general manager who has shown neither the will nor the ability to make the tough decisions necessary to improve his team.

In 1981, the Tribune Company paid 20.5 million dollars to buy the Chicago Cubs.  Tribune Company, which is now privately owned by real estate mogul Sam Zell, has been in the protracted process of selling the team for nearly 2 years now, at a price of somewhere in the neighborhood of a billion dollars.  Among the five final bidders is fan favorite, Dallas Mavericks owner Mark Cuban.  Cubs fans and the non-Tribune owned Chicago sports media have been nearly unanimous in their backing of Cuban, who’s courtside antics at Mavs games combined with his willingness to milk the reality TV teet have turned him into sports’ only real celebrity owner.  His high profile and willingness to spend have convinced the Wrigley faithful that Cuban is their man.

But knowledgeable observers have long claimed that comissioner Bud Selig and baseball’s owners would never allow Cuban to purchase the Cubs, a claim that seemed to gain credibility this week when an anonymous MLB figure essentially said as much.  “There’s no way Bud and the owners are going to let that happen.  Zero chance.”  This in spite of Cuban being the highest bidder for the team, reportedly submitting an offer of 1.3 billion dollars.

The Cubs sale is necessary because Tribune Company is currently carrying 12 and a half billion dollars of debt, mostly due to the way Zell’s buyout of the company was structured.  A 600 million dollar payment is due in June.  Given that Cuban’s bid was the largest by far, one has to believe that the anonymous source is accurate in claiming Selig’s hidden hand has kept the sale from moving forward.

It seems increasingly likely that the sale will not be completed this offseason.  The writing on the wall was most visible when the team decided to give GM Jim Hendry a new contract, an unlikely move for an organization supposedly expecting a pending change in ownership.

Cubs fans should expect 2 things going forward.  First, that the sale will continue to drag on with no real progress for reasons that are never made publicly known.  Tribune Company has always operated the Chicago Tribune’s sports section as a sort of Cubs Pravda, and reliable information comes forth rarely, and usually is read between the lines.  Second, the organization’s lingering debt and uncertainty will hamstring the ability of the team to make positive on-field changes this coming offseason.  Above all, we can be certain that when the Cubs don’t make the necessary moves this offseason to try to take the next step towards winning that elusive title, the Tribune won’t be forthcoming with honest justifications.

Tony Parker erupted for 55 points on Wednesday night to save the Spurs from an 0-4 start in a spectacular double-overtime showing against Minnesota.  In adding 10 assists, he also became just the 3rd player in NBA history to drop a 55/10, joining very elite company in Michael Jordan and Oscar Robertson.

With Manu Ginobili sidelined until at least December and Tim Duncan starting to slow a little with age, the load is now on Parker’s shoulders to carry the offensive load.  He has shown himself to be one of the league’s premier slashers, featuring an explosive first step and an ability to score driving to the basket.  Through the Spurs’ first 4 games, Parker is averaging 33.3 PPG, nearly double his career high.  While he’s certainly not going to continue at that level, Parker is making it clear that he’s ready to take the big step forward that’s been looming for him the last few years.

Big news broke in the NBA today, as the Denver Nuggets dealt Allen Iverson to the Detroit Pistons in exchange for Chauncey Billups, Antonio McDyess, and seldom seen Cheikh Samb.  Pistons president Joe Dumars had vowed changes were in the works after last season’s playoff loss to the Celtics, and just a few games into the 08/09, he delivered on that promise.

It’ll be interesting to see how the deal plays out.  At first it looks like a major risk for the Pistons.  Billups has been essentially the motor that made Detroit run the last several seasons, running the offense and playing fierce defense on the perimiter.  If Iverson has another big season in the tank however, the deal could reignite a Detroit team that had grown stagnant in the seasons following their championship.

With Iverson’s contract set to expire this season though, it makes sense for the Pistons to take the gamble to see if he meshes with the team, especially with Rodney Stuckey waiting in the wings to take over the point long-term.  If Alley-I’s arrival excites ‘Sheed, the Pistons are as dangerous a team as the Celtics were last season, with 3 big threats including Rip Hamilton who at this point in his career is a more reliable scorer than Ray Allen.

Denver takes a larger real risk in acquiring the aging Billups, who’s played alot of long seasons at the age of 32, and has 4 years left on his contract worth over 50 million.  McDyess has another year left on his deal at around 7 million, but he’s put together a nice stretch of healthy seasons, and can be a reliable reserve for the Nuggets.

It’s another major deal for the NBA, which has seen it’s share of blockbusters over the last two seasons.  It also represents another shift of power back towards the East, as the Pistons and Celtics now represent 2 of the 4 favorites for the NBA Championship, including New Orleans and the Lakers.

The rains that fell on the World Series this week dampened whatever little interest the nation had remaining for the Rays-Phillies showdown, and ensured that when Philly was finally crowned on Wednesday night, the fans would have had almost 2 full days to contemplate the likelihood of their being crowned World Series Champions.  I thought that would mean we’d be skipping the ceremonial riot, and save a few trash fires and car flippings.  I obviously wasn’t thinking clearly.

The World Series, like most of the postseason aside from the Tampa-Boston series, lacked much drama.  The Rays were the popular pick going in, but the handicappers overlooked several obvious Philadelphia edges which were quickly displayed once the games got underway.

But Tampa Bay’s window is not closed, as they have almost all their significant players under contract through at least next season, excepting BJ Upton.  If they can make a few smart small moves, and lock up Upton, they could cement themselves as an affordably built contender for the next few seasons.