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You won't find a coach or a player to go on record and say that any loss is good. So you can imagine what the Bulls were thinking when they dropped the final game of the 2006-07 season to the New Jersey Nets, 106-97. Not only did the Bulls fall short of the 50-win plateau, they fell from the No. 2 seed and a First Round match up with the decimated-by-injury Washington Wizards to the No. 5 seed and a match up with the defending champion Miami Heat.

What would you expect? Screaming? Shouting? Pouting? Petulance? Kirk Hinrich, you're young. Show us how it's done.

"We still had a solid year and came a long ways," Kirk Hinrich said after the defeat. "We can't hang our heads about not getting the two seed. We have to try to shake this off and stay in positive spirits."

Whoa. Such a well-reasoned, mature response from the Bulls' young leader. And, less than 10 days later, Hinrich proved himself a sage when the Bulls went out and swept the Heat, the first time in half-a-century the defending champs got such an early heave-ho. In beating the Heat, the Baby Bulls showed they were no longer taking baby steps but making a huge leap in the maturation process.

Granted the Bulls season ended in the next round against division rival Detroit, but the future looks bright. They are deep and talented at nearly every position. Instead of making one of those glitzy, oft-reported (wished for?) trades bandied about on the intertubes, the Bulls decided to keep their cornerstones -- Hinrich, Luol Deng, Ben Gordon, Tyrus Thomas -- and build around them by re-signing Andres Nocioni, bringing in veteran Joe Smith and drafting Joakim Noah. Those moves may not sell papers or get you the top story on SportsCenter, but they will help you win games.
--Rob Peterson

In Kirk Hinrich, the Bulls have one the league's steadiest point guards. His numbers over his first four seasons have been incredibly consistent with the exception of his scoring, which Hinrich has increased each season. On defense, Hinrich, a member of the All-Defensive second team last season, is a thorn in the side of opponents.

While Hinrich may be a pain to opposing guards, Ben Gordon is a pain to guard. Gordon averaged a career-best 21.4 points per game last season as well as shooting .413 from three-point range, which was down from .435 the year before. Where Gordon is deficient is ball handling. It was nice to see his assists per game rise to 3.6, but his turnovers were up as well (3.04). Chris Duhon and Thabo Sefolosha hope to fill in the backcourt off the bench.

Chicago's frontcourt could be the deepest in the East, if not the NBA. Four-time Defensive Player of the Year, Ben Wallace anchors the post. As important as Wallaces' defense is to the Bulls, they could be concerned about the 33-year old breaking down. Wallace grabbed 10.7 boards per game and rejected 2.0 shots per game. Those may be great numbers for someone else, but those numbers represented a seven-year low.

As for the other members of the frontcourt, it's an intriguing mix of veterans (Wallace and Joe Smith) and youth. Luol Deng locks down sweet shooting swingmen on the perimeter and Tyrus Thomas comes flying in from the weakside to block shots. Then there's Nocioni, the Bull who most plays like a bull and Noah, a high-energy rookie who will probably block more shots than make them.
-- Rob Peterson

Deng

It may be a stretch to put 22-year-old Luol Deng on the spot, but the time has come. In his third season last year, Deng posted career highs in points, rebounds, assists, steals, shooting percentage and free throw percentage. And there's no question that he can, and will be called upon, to improve those digits. His stellar post-season (22.2 points per game, 8.0 boards) showed that he can achieve more.

On a team where what you see is what you get with most of the players, Deng has the potential to be one of the more versatile small forwards in the game, and the focal point for the Bulls on both ends of the floor. At 6-9, he could also develop into the low post offensive threat everyone thinks the Bulls need to reach The Finals.

Will it happen this season? The Bulls sure hope so.
-- Rob Peterson

SCOTT SKILES

Skiles

Eighth Season, Fifth with Chicago
Career Record: 272-237 (.534)
Playoff Record: Five times, 15-20 (.429)

Scott Skiles is tough. Even his name has a hard edge to it. Basically, Skiles is Frank Martin, "The Transporter" of the NBA. (He even looks like Jason Statham.) Skiles' job, like Martin's, is to transport his charges from A (tipoff) to B (the final horn) with as little fuss and as much disciplined action as possible. His teams play a hustling, hard-nosed defense (was second in the league in defensive field goal percentage .435) and under control and smart on offense.

He's also not above crackin' a skull every now and then, even if it is Ben Wallace, the team's highly touted free-agent acquisition, for wearing a headband. Letting the youngsters know that even the four-time NBA Defensive Player of the Year is subject to the same rules may seem silly to some of us, but it sets the tone in the lockerroom: Skiles is the boss, performance is all.
-- Rob Peterson

They are a good team. They helped themselves. They resigned Nocioni, they drafted Noah. They will probably be better than they were last year, a definite playoff team.
They have no real inside scoring. So, they rely a lot on perimeter stuff and key basketball which is all good. But a lot of times you need to find a way to get an easy basket. I don't think they get that. That is probably their number one weakness.
The other thing is as good as Hinrich and Ben Gordon are, point guard wise Hinirch's a point guard but he is not a true point guard. Sometimes I think creativity is lacking at times. But both those guys are really good players.
Scott Skiles is a very good coach. I would say they are excellent on the defensive end. They are physical, they are solid and they are ready to play hard every night. They are tough.
-- Eastern Conference Scout

PG - Kirk Hinrich: Look for a slight drop in points scored but an increase in assists this year.
SG - Ben Gordon: Scoring, three-pointers and free throw percentage. Look for the same this year.
SF - Luol Deng: He should maintan the same All-Star caliber numbers this season.
PF - Joe Smith: Smith will give you modest point and rebound numbers but little else.
C - Ben Wallace: Be cognizant that Big Ben is clearly not the factor he once was.
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Record: 39-43, 9th in Eastern Conf.
Playoffs: Did not qualify
Scoring Leader: B. Gordon, 22.9 PPG
Rebounding Leader: B. Wallace, 12.3 RPG
Assist Leader: K. Hinrich, 8.1 APG

Simulated Season Details

NBA Seasons: 41
Playoff Appearances: 27
NBA Finals Appearances: 6
Championships: 6 | Last Title: 1997-98
Best Season: 1995-96, 72-10

Season Opener:
Oct. 31 @ NJN (7:30 p.m. ET)
Home Opener:
Nov. 2 vs. PHI (8:30 p.m. ET)
Longest Road Trip(s):
6 games in 11 days: Nov. 15-25
@ PHX, @ LAC, @ LAL, @ DEN, @ NYK, @ TOR
Longest Home Stand(s):
4 games in 7 days: Jan. 21-29
IND, CHA, PHX, MIN
4 games in 8 days: March 18-25
NJN, SAS, IND, ATL
Buy tickets | Full Bulls schedule

TV:Comcast SportsNet, WGN-TV, WCIU-TV
Radio: WCKG 105.9 FM
Web: Official site
Local Coverage: Chicago Tribune, Chicago Sun-Times