| 19 December 2011
Pardon the lame pun, but I thought that's one of the reasons we signed him.
In a previous recent post, I likened the Rip Hamilton acquisition to that of Dennis Rodman, in that he came from a hated Pistons team and has always been an arch-rival, but now has a chance to take a Bulls team to the next level. And similar to Rodman, we got him for pretty much nothing. No offense Will Purdue.
Nonetheless, we are talking about a player who averaged 14.1 ppg last season in what was considered the worst year of his career. Not only that, but he played in just 55 games due to the complete breakdown of his relationship with ill-fated head coach John Kuester. Kuester, asside from fellow unich head coach Jim Boylan, might just be the worst head coach of all time. His overall demeanor made it somewhat clear why someone might decide to lead a mutiny against him. Not that I condone that type of behavior. But we're talking about a guy who has always had the reputation of being a class-act and incredibly professional with a strong work ethic. Whatever happened, I blame Kuester. For the drama and for Rip's bad season.
My point is, Rip never really got into a rhythm last year because of all that nonsense, yet still, averaged 14.1 points a game in the 55 games that he did play. And that's after his minutes started getting limited due to being forced to the bench by Kuester. He also shot 43% from the field last season, close enough to his career average of 45%. On top of that, his 3-point % shot up to 38% up from his career average of 34.7%. These are not the stats of a player who is in serious decline.
In fact, in reality, I would liken Rip Hamilton moreso to Ray Allen. He will be our version of Ray Allen. Sure, not as good of 3-point shooter. But beyond that, they're practically twins. Allen was acquired by the Celtics when he was 32 going into 33. Rip is a year older. Rip, however, is known for keeping himself in impeccable shape. Probably one of the fittest guys in the NBA. Further, Ray Allen does not dominate the ball. He's a catch and shoot player who runs around screens and keeps his defender moving at all times. Rip Hamilton, similarly, does not dominate the ball. In fact, he rarely dribbles at all. Like Ray-Ray, it's catch and shoot all day. That is the exact type of player needed to compliment Derrick Rose. Just like Ray Allen compliments Rondo and Pierce, both who dominate the ball, by keeping his motor running and always trying to get open for the pop-and-drop, similarly will Rip Hamilton compliment Derrick Rose. In no way does this hinder Derrick's ability to dominate the ball, which I think is the most important part of this acquisition.
You have to think about it like this. Your average 2-guard basically had the night off on defense last year when their assignment was to guard Keith Bogans or Ronnie Brewer (no offense to your base-line working skills, Ronnie). This year, not so much. I predict Rip Hamilton will average close to 17 points a game this year if he stays healthy, and that's about 5 more than Ronnie Brewer and Keith Bogans combined last year. Add Kyle Korver's and Brewer's average contributions on top of that, and you're looking at 25 points a game from the 2-guard spot. The Bulls haven't had that type of contribution from the 2 since MJ. That's 17 additional points the Bulls can potentially score every game. Huge.
Not only that, but the options that Derrick Rose now has for him to kick the ball out to. Now defenders will have to focus less on Luol Deng when he's camped out in the corner because they will also have to worry about Rip Hamilton, whereas in the past, they just let Bogans pop the three as many times as he wanted because you know that he'd clank 3 out of 4 he'd put up. On the other hand, Rip will be running around, getting open, and stroking that smooth jumpshot he's perfected. All while tiring out what will probably be the other team's best perimeter defender, unless that team decides to throw a bigger body at Derrick Rose. And like I said, all of that should make Luol Deng's life easier.
Believe me when I say Rip will make a huge impact. A far more significant impact than a player like Jamal Crawford or Jason Richardson would have, simply because his style of play is the absolute PERFECT compliment to Derrick Rose's style of play. I don't think Richardson would have been the missing piece, but Hamilton very well could be. Right now, I have very high expectations for this Bulls team, considering the Eastern Conference Finals were much closer than anyone gives them credit for. Throw in Rip Hamilton's shooting and overall effect on offense and defense (don't forget, he'll tire his defender out, and he's also 6'7" and fairly long, so he'll be tough on D as well), and that series has a few games swing the Bulls' way. In a seven game series, with Hamilton probably giving Wade fits, I say it's most definitely a coin-toss.
Don't get me wrong, I'm not annointing the Bulls new champs of the league or the team to beat necessarily. All I'm saying is that you can't ask for much more than what they've done to put themselves in a position to win and compete for a title.
