Dwyane Wade has known what it takes to win an NBA championship since his third season in the league. He was the franchise guard of the Miami Heat team that won an NBA title in 2006. The Chicago Bulls have been a team looking from the outside in for nearly twenty years. The Bulls came close one time during that stretch, losing to the Heat in the Eastern Conference Finals in 2011 in five games.
The fifth game of that series began a pattern for the young, yet talented Chicago Bulls. The Bulls failed to close the game, as they squandered a 15-point lead in the final minutes of game 5 of the Eastern Conference Finals. That series, in turn closed the deal for the Bulls on their home floor of the United Center, Bulls Tickets could be sold no more. Then there was Game 4 of the 2015 Eastern Conference Semi-Finals. A game where the Bulls squandered a 10-point third quarter lead, with the Cavs going on to win 86-84 to tie the series 2-2, instead of the Bulls taking a commanding 3-1 lead. The question of leadership is at the forefront of the Bulls failures and if there was a stable of mentally tough players, the outcomes would be vastly different.
With the level of talent that the Bulls have had in the past decade, there is no question that this team was talented enough to win an NBA title. Derrick Rose was the youngest player to win an MVP (2011) and was an All Star as well. Injuries curtailed him at the end of the year and the Bulls could not recover. Joakim Noah became an NBA All-Star, former 2014 NBA Defensive Player of the Year and could not help take the Bulls to the Finals. In reality, losing in the NBA Finals is different from losing in the Eastern Conference Finals, in which there is more of a learning curve, with the longevity of each playoff run.
With the arrival of Dwyane Wade, the Bulls have a player that will have tremendous influence on the young players in the locker room. Wade has the experience of what it takes to win it all. Far too long the Bulls lack of experience winning down the stretch to capture a NBA title was their Achilles’ heel. With Wade’s resume, how could the Bulls turn the consummate professional NBA star away?
With Dwyane Wade and the addition of Rajon Rondo, there is a tremendous opportunity for the Bulls to learn how to compete and develop the mental toughness and tenacity that will bode well for the young nucleus emerging in the Windy City. There is no doubt that change needed to be made, and a fresh perspective will be paved by winners like Wade and Rondo who demonstrated leadership skills during their careers.
Head Coach Fred Hoiberg appears to have upgrades in Wade and Rondo over former players Derrick Rose and Joakim Noah. Rajon Rondo's game has always been to distribute the basketball to make the players around him better, and Dwyane Wade has demonstrated that he is willing to defer to another star, to do whatever it takes to win. Wade is also a great teacher of the game, and is willing to help younger players. In the end, Wade and Rondo may not be the players they used to be, but now players like Bobby Portis, Doug McDermott, and should seize the opportunity to play alongside them and elevate their game.
For Bulls fans, let’s hope the offseason maneuvers will bring leadership and stability to teach the young players how to win in the NBA.
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