Tuesday, June 21st, 2011 at 11:55 am  |  15 responses

Mock: Iman Shumpert, No. 30

Perfect fit for Bulls basketball.

by Bryan Crawford

If the last player picked in any professional draft is nicknamed, “Mr. Irrelevant,” then the last pick of the first round of the NBA Draft should be called “Mr. Damn Near Irrelevant.” Especially in the case of the Chicago Bulls. Historically, whenever Chicago has picked this late in the draft, whoever they chose seemed to fade into NBA obscurity faster than David Stern called their name.

Mark Randall, Byron Houston, Travis Knight, Keith Booth and Corey Benjamin were all taken by the Bulls at the bottom of the first round between 1991 and 1998. And all are candidates for a “Where Are They Now?” episode.

However, in this years draft and with the NBA being what it is today, the last pick in the First Round has a much better shot of sticking with Chicago, especially a player who hails from the area.

With the 30th pick in the SLAMonline Mock Draft, the Chicago Bulls select…

Iman Shumpert from Georgia Tech.

Scoring. It was the Chicago Bulls’ Achilles heel during the postseason. Aside from Derrick Rose, there wasn’t another player on the roster who could create their own shot or even display some semblance of offensive reliability. You might be able to get away with that during the regular season, but the Playoffs are something different entirely.

Iman Shumpert solves that problem from the giddy up.

As a 6-6, 220 pound combo-guard, Shumpert has great size to go along with the ability to take his man off the dribble and get to the basket. He’s sort of like a poor man’s Joe Johnson whom the Bulls coveted in free agency last summer. Obviously that’s saying a lot for a kid who hasn’t even “officially” made it into the NBA and hasn’t shown yet that he can cut it, but his skillset and style of play are similar to that of the Atlanta Hawks star

Shumpert has split time at the point guard and off-guard positions since he was in HS at Oak Park- River Forest, and during his time in the ACC at Georgia Tech. So while he hasn’t really mastered to the finer points of either position, he’s still comfortable (and effective) with or without the ball in his hands and he can make plays and score from either position. His jumper is decent, but he has a tendency to fall in love with it (especially from mid-range) and his shot selection isn’t exactly the greatest, but all of these habits are correctable and in a system like Tom Thibodeau’s, they will most definitely be corrected.

But on defense is where Iman Shumpert really shines.

He actually takes extreme pride in locking down his man one-on-one. His quick feet and lateral movement are second to none in this draft and he has even quicker hands to get deflections and even outright steals on that end of the floor. His energy and effort on D will be the very thing that gets him in Thibs’s good graces and he would make an excellent practice opponent for Derrick Rose.

This late in the draft, it’s hard to find a player that you love, but if Iman Shumpert is available and Chicago takes him, then the Bulls will absolutely love the player that they get.

2011 SLAMonline Mock Draft
Pick Team Player Pick Team Player
1 Cavs Kyrie Irving 16 76ers Markieff Morris
2 TWolves Derrick Williams 17 Knicks Nikola Vucevic
3 Jazz Brandon Knight 18 Wizards Jordan Hamilton
4 Cavs Enes Kanter 19 Bobcats Marshon Brooks
5 Raptors Bismack Biyombo 20 TWolves Klay Thompson
6 Wizards Jan Vesely 21 Blazers Darius Morris
7 Kings Kemba Walker 22 Nuggets Kenneth Faried
8 Pistons Kawhi Leonard 23 Rockets Reggie Jackson
9 Bobcats Jonas Valanciunas 24 Thunder Justin Harper
10 Bucks Alec Burks 25 Celtics JaJuan Johnson
11 Warriors Marcus Morris 26 Mavs Donatas Motiejunas
12 Jazz Tobias Harris 27 Nets Charles Jenkins
13 Suns Jimmer Fredette 28 Bulls Jimmy Butler
14 Rockets Chris Singleton 29 Spurs Jeremy Tyler
15 Pacers Tristan Thompson 30 Bulls Iman Shumpert
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  • Enigmatic Posted: Jun.21 at 1:39 pm
    Hmm… I don’t know man, dude was inconsistent at times at G Tech.
    He barely shot over 40% from the field last year, and that was actually his highest FG% of his college career.
    Dude shot 27% from three.
    The defense is definitely there.
    But the Bulls already got some solid defensive options at the 2. That’s not an area they need help in.
    But at this stage of the draft, they’re not going to find anyone special anyways.

  • Enigmatic Posted: Jun.21 at 1:40 pm
    Also, Shumpert will probably still be available when the Bulls pick again at 43.

  • Bryan Crawford Posted: Jun.21 at 2:25 pm
    I don’t know ‘Matic, I like him and think he can help. Shooting is nothing but repetition anyway, so he can get his numbers up, but I like him more for his ability to be able to put the ball on the floor and attack the rim, especially at his size. Past Derrick Rose, there wasn’t really another player on the roster who could do that consistently.
    I also think he’ll be gone at 43. He’s not that bad.

  • Enigmatic Posted: Jun.21 at 2:32 pm
    I suppose that would be nice to add to the team.
    I think I would’ve gone with Davis Bertans. A 6’10” sharp-shooting small forward. Let him marinate for a year or two overseas, then bring him over and make defenses pay for doubling Rose.

  • Bryan Crawford Posted: Jun.21 at 2:45 pm
    I like that idea, but every team the NBA is about to go into “win now” mode due to the Miami Heat. You can’t really afford to wait a year or two for a guy to get seasoned. Cats are gonna get thrown straight into the fire now.

  • rainman10 Posted: Jun.21 at 2:49 pm
    The Bulls need to take Kyle Singler with one of their first round picks. Singler will be fine in their defensive schemes, but his offensive abilities will help. Not as good a shooter as Korver, but he does everything else better. Can play in a small lineup with Noah, Deng, Rose and whoever else, or play the 2 in a big lineup.

  • Bryan Crawford Posted: Jun.21 at 3:03 pm
    If the Bulls take anybody from Duke it should be Nolan Smith, not Kyle Singler. He doesn’t help them at all.

  • Diesel Posted: Jun.21 at 3:09 pm
    I like Shumpert with this pick. All the draft talk I’ve heard says that Shumpert has been impressing with his workouts and could go as high as 13 to the suns. He was the best athlete at the combine. He’s got length, can play the point, and can be a good shooter with work. If he steps into CJ’s current role, he’ll have to be more of a distributor and slasher anyway. Korver would be handling the outside shooting for the bench mob. I like taking a chance on his upside with this pick if he’s still around.

  • rainman10 Posted: Jun.21 at 3:13 pm
    I don’t see how Nolan Smith would help the Bulls either. He isn’t better than CJ Watson. They should actually try and trade up for Darius Morris or Klay Thompson

  • Bryan Crawford Posted: Jun.21 at 3:17 pm
    I think Nolan Smith is better than CJ Watson, strictly based on his ability (and willingness) to attack the basket. Chicago, all Playoffs, was turned into a jump shooting team. Somebody has to be able to put the ball on the floor and get to the rim.
    Nolan Smith is as solid as they come, and I’m not a big fan of Duke players. But I watched him destroy Jrue Holliday last summer, and he’s a starter in the League. The kid can play for real.

  • CoreyKeenen Posted: Jun.21 at 3:32 pm
    Iman Shumpert probably doesn’t solve the Bulls Shooting Guard position, but I know he solves their backup Point Guard position. Imagine him being a richer, bigger version of CJ Watson. He can defend better than Watson, can score better than Watson, he’s more explosive than Watson, and he’ll take care of the ball better than Watson. I mean, just think about it, is Watson even a first-round pick in this draft? I don’t think so.

  • Enigmatic Posted: Jun.21 at 3:46 pm
    I think the Bulls should look into trading up to take Marshon Brooks. HE would be the PERFECT player for them.

  • Bryan Crawford Posted: Jun.21 at 4:00 pm
    I like Marshon Brooks a lot. I was hoping his buzz/stock would remain low enough for the Bulls to possibly steal him, but it doesn’t look as if that’s going to happen. He would be an excellent pick, but I doubt if they’d be willing to give up anything more than their 2 picks to get him.

  • Roscoe63 Posted: Jun.21 at 10:48 pm
    Shumpert will enable Rose to rest more while making the defense better as Rose rest. There are other domino effects to Shumpert being on the Bulls roster, which I listed in my piece on Blogabulls. http://www.blogabull.com/2011/6/20/2233849/why-the-bulls-should-draft-iman-shumpert-and-reggie-jackson

  • r2j Posted: Jun.22 at 1:54 am
    Bryan’s pick is the best one. Nolan Smith would fit in perfectly cause he can play on both ends of the ball Defense and offense. Shumpert has potinetal to play better as a pro than he did in Georgia Tech but Smith should be the right choice for them. Beside’s Bulls love Dukies ask Deng and Boozer.

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